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(Big Sky Connection) Advocates for a fair, sustainable and healthy food system have released a report showing increasing consolidation in Montana’s agriculture sector.

Economists said such conditions can lead to market manipulation. The report from the advocacy group Farm Action showed 85 percent of the beef raised on U.S. farms, including in Montana, is produced by four companies: Cargill, JBS USA, National Beef and Tyson Foods.

Angela Huffman, president of Farm Action, said the concentration in the ag industry is happening all the way from farm fields to the consumer’s plate, and she warned it creates the potential for artificial price controls.

“This is the scenario in almost every sector of the food supply chain,” Huffman pointed out. “Seeds, fertilizer, farm equipment, beef, pork and poultry processing, and retail groceries; every one of those sectors I just named has upwards of 60 percent to even 85 percent of those markets are controlled by four corporations.”

Consolidation in the livestock industry means more animals are raised in large confinement operations, where manure runoff can affect air quality, ground and surface water in rural Montana. Operators have said they are researching more efficient and environmentally friendly ways to raise livestock while trying to keep up with growing consumer demand.

Huffman argued monopolies can lead to collusion, price fixing and other types of market manipulation. Her group and others are urging lawmakers in Congress to address the issue in the pending Farm Bill.

“We’re calling on the government to reclaim its role as an enforcer of our antitrust laws and break up these dominant corporations,” Huffman explained. “In order to free our economy to start working for the people who are producing, processing and distributing our food.”

The current Farm Bill, which officially expired last September, has been temporarily extended, although lawmakers have yet to agree on a new version of the major legislation.

By Justin Franz  

For the first time in decades, a steam locomotive whistle echoed off the headframes and miners’ halls of Butte, Mont., thanks to a visit by a former McCloud River Railroad 2-8-2 for a television shoot. 

In late October, Virginia & Truckee Railroad 18 was brought north to BNSF Railway’s Copper City Subdivision in Montana to film a scene in an upcoming episode of the Western drama “1923,” a spin-off of Paramount Network’s “Yellowstone.” The series starring Harrison Ford and Helen Mirren is filming its second season around Montana, particularly around the old mining city of Butte. 

But for railroad enthusiasts, the real star of the show will be V&T 18 masquerading as a Northern Pacific locomotive. The Baldwin 2-8-2 and three cars from the V&T fleet were trucked from Carson City, Nev., to the BNSF yard in Butte, where they were unloaded and used for three days of shooting beginning November 1. Most of the filming occurred in front of the former NP depot in downtown Butte, which wore a “Livingston” station sign for the scene. (While the real Livingston station still exists, Butte has become a popular filming location for the “Yellowstone” franchise. 

While V&T 18 still very much looked like a McCloud locomotive (it was built in 1914 for the Northern California short line), the “1923” art department did an admirable job getting the details right, with proper NP lettering on the tender and appropriate locomotive number (1770) and classification (W-3) under the cab. The real 1770 was built a year earlier than V&T 18, although the NP W-3 locomotives were a bit huskier than the McCloud Mikados.

The locomotive and train mostly stayed within the confines of BNSF’s Butte yard, with fencing and tarps blocking many views during the shoot. However, on November 3, the locomotive briefly left the yard to be turned on a nearby wye in preparation for the trip back to Nevada. 

“Northern Pacific 1770” was the first standard gauge steam locomotive to operate in Montana since 2009, when Southern Pacific 4-8-4 4449 passed through the state when returning from Train Festival 2009 in Owosso, Mich. Prior to this month, a steam locomotive hadn’t run in Butte since the 1950s. 

Montana’s Republican and Democratic caucuses today elected party leaders for the upcoming legislative session, which will begin in Helena on Jan. 6, 2025. 

Kalispell Republican Matt Regier, who currently serves as speaker of the state House, will serve as the next president of the Senate. 

“It’s an honor to serve as the next President of the Senate,” Regier said in a press release on Tuesday afternoon. “I look forward to working with senators on passing a conservative balanced budget, giving Montanans tax relief, and preserving the Montana way of life for future generations.” 

Republicans will hold 59 of 100 state House seats and 32 of 50 state Senate seats during the 2025 session, leaving them with a smaller, but still powerful, majority when compared to 2023.

Sen. Ken Bogner, R-Miles City, will serve as Senate president pro tempore, similar to “vice president” of the Senate. Sen. Tom McGillvray, R-Billings, will serve as Senate majority leader. 

Sens. Dennis Lenz, R-Billings; Daniel Zolnikov, R-Roundup; and Barry Usher, R-Billings; as well as Sen-elect Sue Vinton, R-Lockwood will serve as majority whips. Whips are typically responsible for rounding up lawmakers to cast votes critical to the party’s agenda. 

In the House, Rep. Brandon Ler, R-Savage, will be House speaker. Rep. Katie Zolnikov, R-Billings, will be House speaker pro tempore. Former Senate Majority Leader Steve Fitzpatrick, R-Great Falls, will be House majority leader. 

Reps. Amy Regier, R-Kalispell; Braxton Mitchell, R-Columbia Falls; Jed Hinkle, R-Belgrade; and Marta Bertoglio, R-Montana City will serve as majority whips. 

For the Democrats, Sen. Pat Flowers, D-Belgrade, will once again serve as Senate minority leader. 

Sens. Shane Morigeau, D-Missoula; Laura Smith, D-Helena; and Susan Webber, D-Browning will be Senate minority whips. 

In the House, Rep. Katie Sullivan, D-Missoula, will be minority leader. 

“I am honored that my colleagues have chosen me as House Minority Leader,” Sullivan said in a press release. “Montana’s House Democrats will bring a package of legislation to protect freedom, promote fairness, and advance affordability for Montanans, and I am looking forward to leading our Caucus as we work to get Montana back on track.”

Reps. SJ Howell, D-Missoula; Tyson Running Wolf, D-Browning; Melissa Romano, D-Helena; and Jonathan Karlen, D-Missoula will be minority whips. 

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