Springfield Business Journal_2019-02-25

48 · SBJ.NET FEB. 25-MARCH 3, 2019 NEWS ON THE RECORD Eye on China As a longtime contributor to the beef industry, Cope said herd size has been in- creasing over the last few years as demand for beef grows domestically and interna- tionally. According to the USDA, 2018 inven- tory was at 31.7 million head, up from 29.1 mil- lion head in 2014 when a drought impacted numbers. “We haven’t felt the tariff impact much simply because we weren’t selling much beef to China in the first place,” Cope said. “But that certainly is a market beef producers would like to tap into.” Hammons said his company had previ- ously looked into the China market back in 2011, even making multiple trips to the country. He said China doesn’t have black walnuts, but it does have a domestic wal- nut like the English walnut typically grown in California. The Chinese consumers don’t know what a black walnut is or understand the difference in flavor like those in the Ozarks do, he added. The tariffs on walnuts in China make the price for black walnuts quite a bit higher than the walnuts already produced there, he said, noting it was ultimately a barrier to establishing a market in the country. “We’re a small company, so we don’t have a lot of resources to spend on going overseas to develop new markets where there aren’t any – especially if we don’t know there’s consumer interest,” Hammons said of his 80-employee business, declining to dis- close annual revenue. “China was interest- ing partly because it’s such a dynamic place. But I do see tariffs as a long-term barrier to potentially seeing that happen.” Optimistic outlook Both Hammons and Cope believe the U.S. and China meeting this month is a positive sign, and they’re opti- mistic the trade war between the world’s two biggest economies could be soon com- ing to an end. “I think a lot of people are optimistic about this,” Cope said, adding China has been dealing with an outbreak of African swine fever – an incurable disease in pigs but not harmful to people – since August 2018. According to the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs in China, the country by mid-January had culled more than 916,000 pigs from around 100 outbreaks of the disease. “It has absolutely decimated their pork industry and their pig herd,” Cope said. “In a way, we’ve got potentially a leg up in these trade negotiations because of this African swine fever they’ve got. I think they’ll be willing to negotiate a lot sooner than maybe they normally would.” industry,” he said. Total U.S. beef exports in 2017 were valued at $7.3 bil- lion, up from $6.3 billion in 2016, according to the U.S. Meat Export Federation. Full- year 2018 data is not yet avail- able, but through November 2018, exports were tracking at a similar value as 2017. “I think most producers are very supportive of President Trump’s tariffs,” Cope added. “A lot of us feel like with China and other countries, we’ve had this unfair trade bal- ance with them for years.” According to the U.S. Bureau of Eco- nomic Analysis, the U.S. had a $337 billion trade deficit with China in 2017. The deficit has hovered above $300 billion annually since 2014. “I think agriculture is willing to have a little bit of short-term pain for long-term gain,” he added. Brian Hammons, president of Stockton- based Hammons Products Co., said he wasn’t too concerned when retaliatory tariffs were announced last summer by China. He said his primary busi- ness crop, black wal- nuts, was not on the agriculture goods list, but noted pistachios – which Hammons does not produce – were among those targeted. Unlike Cope, Hammons said he questions the value of tariffs in general, including those ordered by the United States. “I think tariffs are a very bad thing long- term for the economy,” he said. “Fair free trade is very important for economies to function most efficiently and for businesses to operate most effectively. That’s a gen- eral philosophy, a general perspective. But when we have a tariff war, I wonder about the end result of that.” Still at war U.S. and China representatives have been in discussions this month in advance of Trump’s March 1 deadline for increasing U.S. tariffs to 25 percent on $200 million worth of Chinese products. The current rate is 10 percent. The trade war also has ex- tended beyond China, as the Trump administration previ- ously added imported solar panels to the tariffs list in Janu- ary 2018, and levied a 25 per- cent tariff on steel and 10 per- cent tariff on aluminum from Canada and Mexico in June 2018, according to past Spring- field Business Journal report- ing. Despite the tariffs, estimates from the U.S. Department of Agriculture for exports in 2019 are not dire. According to the department, exports will drop to $141.5 billion this year, down by $1.9 billion from 2018. However, the USDA said the total is still the third highest on record, with $152.3 bil- lion in fiscal 2014 as the peak. Patrick Westhoff, director of the Food and Agricultural Policy Research Institute at the University of Missouri, said the state is still feeling a negative impact from the tariffs overall. He doesn’t blame the tariffs as a sole contributor to last year’s decline in value of soybeans and corn – the state’s top two crops. He said their combined value dropped over 14 per- cent to $3.92 billion in 2018. “In Missouri, it’s a combination of the tariffs and lower yields, too,” he said. “It’s both of those factors that came into play.” Westhoff said Missouri has more soy- bean production relative to its overall mix of commodities, ranking sixth nationally at 290 million bushels, according to the Mis- souri Department of Agriculture. “We probably have a little bit larger pro- portion affected than the average state,” he said of the tariffs’ impact on soybeans, which he noted are grown more prevalent- ly in the northern and bootheel portions of the state. He said beef is a much bigger agriculture commodity presence in southwest Mis- souri. According to the state agriculture de- partment, Missouri is second in the nation in beef cattle at 2.16 million head. Brian Hammons : Tariffs are bad long-term for the U.S. economy. 2.16M Beef cattle in Missouri reported by the Missouri Department of Agriculture $141.5B Estimated value of U.S. exports in 2019 by the U.S. Department of Agriculture Trade: Black walnuts company sees barrier in entering China Continued from page 3 Ridgeview St., Battlefield 65619; same; (417) 839-7536; special trades contractor. Cleaning Maid Easy; Adrienne Peterson; 4415 S. Glenn Ave. 65810; same; (417) 576-8286; cleaning/maintenance service. Falcon Holdings Management LLC; same; 1301 Solona Blvd., Bldg. 2-2300, Westlake, TX 76262; 3302 S. National Ave., Stes. D-E; (417) 883-8500; service agent. Gypsum Floors of AR/OK; same; P.O. Box 1707, Muldrow, OK 74948; same; (918) 427-3643; special trades contractor. K-Style Salon; Young Lee; 3156 S. Campbell 65804; same; n/a; beauty shop. KMS Group LLC; same; 2200 E. Sunshine St., Ste. 108 65804; same; (417) 708- 5159; service agent. Pizza Hut No 4084; NPC International Inc.; 720 W. 20th St., Pittsburg, KS 66762; 3868 W. Chestnut Expressway; (417) 429-9065; restaurant. Salon East Suites LLC; same; 596 N. Buffalo St., Marshfield 65706; 3534 E. Sunshine St., Ste. J; (417) 887-4294; beauty shop and service agent. Sell Building; Gilbert Sell; 1233 E. Dale, No. 14, Aldrich 65601; same; (417) 887- 4294; special trades contractor. Salon East Suites LLC; Suzanne Frazier; 3534 E. Sunshine St., Ste. J 65809; same; (417) 887-4294; retail mer- chant. Symbiont Services LLC; same; 3314 W. Camelot St. 65807; 270 Prock Circle, Highlandville; (417) 443-1550; trade/ mechanical contractor. Vitasysco LLC; Daniel Diaz and Daniel Rook; 1305 N. Johnston Ave., Apt. A 65803; 1846 N. Grant Ave., Ste. A; (901) 235-5200; service agent. Your Timeshare Stops Here LLC; Stacey Hammit; 1447 S. Enterprise, Ste. D 65804; same; n/a; service agent. Greene County Business Licenses Listed here are newly licensed businesses in Greene County filed for public record. Included in the listings are the name of the company, owner(s), mailing address, street address, phone number and description of the business. Addresses are in the city of Springfield unless otherwise noted. Feb. 8-14, 2019 That Guys Garage LLC; same; 8015 W. Farm Road 168, Republic 65738; same; (417) 861-7270; service proprietor. Midas of the Ozarks; J&S Wells Enter- prises LLC; 4050 Tipparary, Rogers- ville 65742; 1811 W. Republic Road; (417) 872-7074; retail/service cor- poration. Champion Safety LLC; Kendrick Enter- prises; 4319 S. National Ave. 65810; same; (417) 890-8867; retail part- nership. Hemporium; Green Living LLC; 4139 S. Na- tional Ave. 65807; same; (417) 324- 7724; retail partnership. Salt & Sand Services LLC; same; 13638 W. Wild Rose Lane, Ash Grove 65604; same; (417) 343-0135; wholesale partnership. Cherisa Costello; same; 919 W. Greenwood St. 65807; 3534 E. Sunshine St.; (417) 300-3408; retail/service proprietor. Public Safety Solutions Missouri LLC; same; P.O. Box 8944 65801; 1232 E. Division St.; (417) 459-4040; retail/ service corporation. Bubba Skunk; Andrew Spackman; 532 S. Villa Rose 65802; same; (417) 848- 6182; retail proprietor. Mr. Nice Guy of Springfield MO; Un- dertone LLC; 2101 N. Fountain Dale Lane, Wasilla, AK 99623; 614 N. Na- tional Ave.; (417) 942-1794; retail cor- poration. Skin Essence; same; 4321 S. Ridgecrest Drive 65810; 636 W. Republic Road, Ste. B104; (417) 838-2732; retail/ service proprietor. Federal Tax Lien Releases Listed here are federal tax lien releases filed for public record in Greene County by the Missouri Department of Revenue by record number, name, address, type of tax and estimated amount. Feb. 8-14, 2019 4108. Jaron A. Townsend; 1325 W. Sun- shine, No. 244 65807; individual; 15,011. 4106. Medical Mile Inc. and Mothers Touch Learning Center; 851 E. Cam- bridge St. 65087; business; 11,324. 4107. Sensory Integration Inc.; 309 South Ave. 65806; business; 15,410. 4109. Rock Solid Solutuions LLC and Structo; P.O. Box 3866 65808; business; 5,221. Continued on page 50 BUSINESS LICENSES, from page 46