My cousin implied that the landholdings were only to help people out by stocking the warehouses, but I read that Deseret Management makes about $1.2 billion a year, which I'm sure is a lot of beef, etc.

I think there's more BS dished out to deflect people from realizing how massive a for-profit corp the church is and it bends the law to almost breaking in its tax-free churchy status.

Well, the US government took all their stuff in the 1800's, so I guess it makes sense they'd still be PO'd and want to make sure it doesn't happen again.

my father ran a church farm for 20 years. They grew berries. ALL of the crop was sold to smuckers. The church paid some (non member) workers, but most were church volunteer. The work was hard. each ward in the surrounding stakes had assignments to go work on the farm for free.There were lots of very small children who were forced to work by their parents. When the farm no longer made a profit they (the church) kept it, but leased it out on a 50 year lease. My father was paid well,also free housing,utilities,gas,vehicle,etc. they are now living on a pension from the church complete with lifetime medical.

The ranch in central FL has non-mormon workers. Some of them appear to be migrant type workers when I've seen them. They leased about a 1500 acre portion of the ranch to a technology company for over twenty years, at a good sum of money. They blew it though, as the company leased it with an option to buy, and the price was far lower than market value after the twenty years. This electronics test site is right in the middle of the Deseret ranch's > 300,000 acres.

Deseret Management does NOT make $1.2BN per year. Maybe in revenues, but not operating income. Most stake farms are in the red.

Ron

Do you have actual evidence, or are you just an apologist?

The cattle ranching does not go to store houses for the needy. Here are some old news stories about Nebraska that tell quite a bit.

http://journalstar.com/news/state-and-regional/article_5de7826d-51cb-5b5a-a166-d2b3d38fd1cc.html

The church paid nearly $16 million in cash.

The Mormon vice president of livestock operations said: "We run cattle ranches. We are the largest cow-calf operator in the nation."

"The church, operating under the name Farmland Reserve Inc., manages its ranches to produce a return on its investment. Those returns help support global spiritual missions."

"the church's nonprofit status earns it an exemption from the state ban on corporate farming/ranching."

"It's hard for local folks to outbid an outside investor who has unlimited money"

"In fact, the church always pays cash, Lamoreaux said, eschewing loans and debt."


http://www.deseretnews.com/article/1,5143,595096557,00.html

"The LDS Church has become one of Nebraska's largest landowners"

"We're in business for profit, and of course the profits go to the church"

"Still, the Mormon church — which is exempt from a state ban on corporate farms and ranches because of its nonprofit status — is now a major player among Nebraska landowners."

"John Hansen, president of the Nebraska Farmers Union, said deep-pocket out-of-state interests put smaller landowners — who need to borrow money to buy land — at a disadvantage."

"Smaller ranches are not able to make as much of a profit while paying off debt. That leads to some ranches being consolidated and ultimately the disappearance of rural communities, Hansen said."