This is a word I did not know of until recently. It kind of is the same as greed but it’s more about an uncontrollable desire for money and riches no matter what, and the desire to hoard the wealth.

The way I learned about this was someone talking about big companies being avaricious. This may be true with some companies, and I have even saw the results of this in one company.

When I first started in the world of horse expos I got involved with Purina Mills. They had been a company with a great reputation in all ways. They were purchased by another company and I was in on some of the process. A bunch of young greedy fellows that knew everything came in and managed with a total different philosophy. They bankrupted the company in a few years. This was a great lesson in how greed and arrogance will get you. Purina Mills was then purchased by another company that was managed with integrity and sound business practices and now they are making a profit providing a valuable product for consumers.

The thing I saw was the sales people, mill managers, research farm and even some of the tops in management knew that things at the top were not right, but kept on trying to do the right thing for the customer. That seems to be the only thing that saved the integrity of the checkerboard.

I have been fascinated with Walmart for several years. I have read several books about the company. They have a reputation for being a tough company to do business with and have probably been the reason for some companies demise. My conclusion is they are all about the customer and they will do everything they can to provide their customer with value and moral satisfaction.

Ryan Rupert of the NCBA invited me to attend the Walmart Global Sustainability Milestone meeting. Ryan presented on behalf of the beef industry. It was a great experience and I really was proud of what Ryan did and was amazed at how people in the audience responded to him and the message he shared about beef.

If Walmart is interested in sustainability, the majority of the consumers in the United States and the world are interested in sustainability. Walmart is also very interested in animal welfare. This tells me the customer is very interested in animal welfare.

From what I have read and from my experience at Walmart world headquarters, I do not feel Walmart has avarice. Instead it is almost like a culture to create great value for the customer. The Walmart mantra is “Save money, live better.” That is what Sam Walton was about and that is what the company is still about.

We in agriculture would do well to watch and learn from them. It seems we have to overcome the reputation of exploiting resources because of grazing. We need to refine our resource management and animal welfare practices. We need to work with the Walmarts of the world to learn to be better and help the customer understand “If it isn’t right, we will fix it.”

After thinking about it avarice is kind of the opposite of Stockmanship and Stewardship. We are about working with Mother Nature to create a quality lifestyle that is sustainable and profitable. For most, it is an honor and a huge responsibility to do it the best we can.

It would be time well spent to watch the Global Sustainability Milestone Meeting. Here’s the link: http://corporate.walmart.com/global-responsibility/environment-sustainability

~ Curt Pate