Cattlemen attending the upcoming 2006 Cattle Industry Convention and Trade Show will have a chance to get a close-up view at the other end of the beef marketing chain.  At the convention, to be held in Denver next week, a retail session will be held to examine the different ways beef is marketed at retail.  Mark Thomas, vice president of Global Marketing for the National Cattlemen’s Beef Association, explains.

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Thomas says the session will be led by people who know what they’re talking about.

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The session at which the retail information will be presented are designed with the producers in the audience in mind.

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According to Thomas, producers will appreciate this chance to see what happens at the other end.

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The 2006 Cattle Industry Convention is being held in Denver February 1-4.  The retail issues forum session is intended to provide greater insight into checkoff-funded programs being conducted at the retail level.

The national Beef Checkoff Program is administered by the Cattlemen’s Beef Board, with oversight provided by the U.S. Department of Agriculture.

The national Beef Checkoff Program is administered by the Cattlemen’s Beef Promotion and Research Board, a group of 108 beef producers appointed by the Secretary of Agriculture.  They represent producers from coast-to-coast and volunteer their time to help identify programs that can help increase beef demand.  The checkoff was created in the 1985 Farm Bill, with oversight provided by the U.S. Department of Agriculture. The checkoff assesses $1 per head on the sale of live domestic and imported cattle and a comparable assessment on imported beef and beef products. States retain up to 50 cents on the dollar and forward the other 50 cents to the Cattlemen’s Beef Board, which administers the national checkoff program, subject to USDA approval.