Committee Recommends Increased Attention to Obesity in Children

In an effort to demonstrate their commitment to the health of America’s youth, beef producers on the industry’s Joint Youth Education and Information Committee have stepped up to the plate.  The committee has recommended that checkoff funding be used to create a new program that would help leaders of youth organizations educate kids about appropriate serving sizes, as well as the important nutrients in beef – zinc, iron and protein, or “ZIP.”

The Beef Promotion Operating Committee will review the recommendation next month and then send its own recommendation to the U.S. Department of Agriculture for review prior to implementation at the beginning of the next fiscal year, which begins Oct. 1.     

Obesity is a leading cause of death and disease in the United States, and is growing among both children and adults.  According to the National Institutes of Health, an alarming number of youths are being diagnosed with Type II diabetes, previously an adult condition brought on by excess weight and inactivity. 

Cattlemen’s Beef Board member Gary Sharp, a beef and dairy producer from Bath, S.D. and chairman of the Joint Youth Education and Information Committee, says the risks of the obesity epidemic for the beef industry could be substantial. 

“There’s a wide misperception that we over consume beef, and we know that’s not the case,” Sharp says.  “We need to show young people and their mentors that a 3-ounce serving of beef has reasonable levels of fat and calories, as well as a tremendous nutrient pack,” Sharp says.  Sharp says it’s the youth education committee’s intention to help children understand what appropriate portion sizes are and motivate children to be more physically active. 

The decision to focus on youth organizations was based on the April 2000 recommendations of the Youth Strategic Planning Task Force, Sharp says.  The Task Force recommended that the beef industry target 8 to12-year-olds with an emphasis on girls, and expand educational efforts to venues outside of the school classroom.  Task Force members were guided by market research data on 8 to12-year-olds to help make the health information relevant to this audience.

Among the organizations being considered for attention are the Boys and Girls Clubs of America, YMCA, YWCA, 4-H Clubs and Girls’ Inc.   If approved, the program would be coordinated on behalf of the Cattlemen’s Beef Board by the National Cattlemen’s Beef Association (NCBA).