VALUE-ADDED BEEF AND VEAL PRODUCTS SHOWCASED TO NATION'S LARGEST FOODSERVICE ORGANIZATIONS

CHICAGO (October 22, 1998) - Beef checkoff dollars helped "ease the pain" of traditional Monday night blues with an exciting event called "Blues In The Night," held on September 14, 1998 as part of the 39^th Annual Nation’s Restaurant News’ MUFSO (Multi-Unit Food Service Operators) conference in Chicago, Ill. The beef industry created the event to not only provide a networking forum for the more than 800 MUFSO attendees, but to also allow selected suppliers the opportunity to showcase their new and value-added beef and veal products. Guests from nearly 330 of the largest restaurant and foodservice organizations in North America were in attendance. As a result of the event, participating suppliers obtained heightened exposure for their new and value-added product lines.

Eight suppliers from across the country furnished a wide range of value-added beef and veal appetizers and entrées. They included:

• Reuben Fingerz- Monfort, Greeley, Colo.
• Western-Style, Pizza Style and Cheeseburger Steak Fingers- Advance Food Company, Oklahoma City, Okla.
• Mo Grand Beef Fajita Quesadillas and Mo Grande Beef Taquitos- J.R. Simplot Company, Boise, Idaho.
• Rotiss-A-Roast Beef- American Foods Group, Green Bay, Wis.
• Fully Cooked Beef Prime Rib, Beef Pot Roast and Mexican-Style Shredded Beef- Clear Creek Ranch/Koch Industries, Inc., Wichita, Kan.
• Chicken Fried Steak Sandwiches- Quik-To-Fix Foods, Gainsesville, Ga.
• Chili Paste Tenderloin and Garlic Roasted Sirloin Medallion- Quantum Foods, Inc., Bolingbrook, Ill.
• Veal Bacon and Fully Cooked Osso-Buco- Swissland Packing Co., Ashkum, Ill.

In addition, Seagram Americas and The Boston Beer Company provided beverages.

According to Ken Davis, chairman of the Foodservice Committee and a beef producer from Leesburg, Ohio, "The event was a wonderful opportunity for the suppliers to get the multi-unit operators excited about the new and innovative value-added beef and veal products that are available to them."

In addition, the beef industry’s valuable partnership with Nation’s Restaurant News negotiated further benefits that contributed to the event’s success. Through the partnership, the magazine offered a complimentary news release to highlight each suppliers’ product in its product showcase section, free print ads to help promote the beef industry’s "Blues In The Night" event, and supplier access to the registration list for direct mail follow-up. In addition, NRN sponsored a "Blues In The Night" voice mail at the hotel detailing the special event and an invitation drop in all of the registration notebooks.

-- NCBA --

Events such as "Blues In the Night" and other beef programs are funded by the national beef checkoff, which is administered by the Cattlemen’s Beef Promotion and Research Board. This 111-member board is appointed by the Secretary of Agriculture to oversee the collection of the $1-per-head checkoff, certify state beef councils, implement the provisions of the Federal Order establishing the checkoff and evaluate the effectiveness of checkoff programs.

Development of "Blues In the Night" and many other checkoff-funded efforts is conducted by the National Cattlemen’s Beef Association. NCBA is the marketing organization and trade association for America’s one million cattle ranchers and farmers. With offices in Denver, Chicago and Washington, D.C., NCBA is a consumer-focused, producer-directed organization representing the largest segment of the nation’s food and fiber industry.