2002 News Archive
CBB Chairman Delivers Message to Dairy Producers
MADISON, Wis. (October 9, 2002) – Cattlemen’s Beef Board Chairman Dee Lacey reminded dairy producers at the World Dairy Expo in Madison, Wis., last week that they play an important role in the beef checkoff, as beef from dairy animals represent a significant part of the beef industry. Lacey had traveled to Madison to visit with dairy producers about their investment in beef checkoff programs.
“When that dairy cow is no longer productive in the milking parlor, she is productive in the beef industry,” said Lacey, a beef producer from Paso Robles, Calif. “Close to 20 percent of our beef supply is from dairy breeds. And new convenient beef products, which are sometimes further processed, use a lot of beef from dairy cows.”
As part of her visit, Lacey explained to representatives from the Wisconsin Farm Bureau, Family Dairies, and Professional Dairy Producers of Wisconsin how the checkoff has played a part in adding value to the chuck and round. And dairy industry leaders had an opportunity to taste the new “flat iron steak,” a “Beef Value Cut” discovered through checkoff-funded research. It is from the top blade in the chuck and is the second most tender muscle in the carcass. This steak, now being promoted to processors as part of the beef checkoff’s new-product development program, is being distributed by Sysco Foods, and state beef councils are working actively to get it placed on restaurant menus.
John Roberts, a dairy producer from Vermont and a member of the Beef Board’s Executive Committee, also attended the World Dairy Expo to meet with dairy producers and the media about checkoff programs.
“Dairy producers are an integral part of the beef checkoff program,” said Roberts, who also has served on the Beef Promotion Operating Committee, which makes final recommendations about program funding to the USDA. “In their service both on state beef councils and on the national Beef Board, dairy producers help make decisions on behalf of beef producers nationwide to build demand for our product.”
During the Expo, Lacey and Roberts met with officers of Holstein USA and Family Dairies, directors of Dairy Management, Inc., representatives of Packerland Packing and Emmpak Packing, and Chuck Adami, President & CEO of Equity Cooperative Livestock Sales Association, the largest independent livestock marketing agency in the United States. Lacey and Adami discussed checkoff efforts in the areas of irradiated beef and new product development.
A checkoff exhibit at the five-day show highlighted the importance of dairy beef quality assurance. Staff members from the Wisconsin Beef Council provided more than 2,000 samples of pot roast to dairy producers and distributed Beef Board annual reports.
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The Beef Checkoff Program was established as part of the 1985 Farm Bill. The checkoff assesses $1 per head on the sale of live domestic and imported cattle, in addition to a comparable assessment on imported beef and beef products. States retain up to 50 cents on the dollar and forward the other 50 cents per head to the Cattlemen’s Beef Promotion and Research Board, which oversees the national checkoff program, subject to USDA oversight. The checkoff assessment became mandatory when the program was approved by 79 percent of producers in a 1988 national referendum vote. Checkoff revenues may be used for promotion, education and research programs to improve the marketing climate for beef.
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