2005 News Archive
CONTACT: Dean Conklin 303-850-3387 dconklin@beef.org
Joe Schuele 303-850-3360 joeschuele@beef.org
Veal Industry Plan Targets New Customers
Through Expanded Restaurant Venues
DENVER (April 29, 2005) – Expanding veal’s availability in casual-dining restaurants has been established as a major goal for the veal industry, as a result of long-range planning sessions held last week by veal industry leaders.
Increasing consumer awareness of veal is an important goal of the Beef Checkoff Program. Veal promotion, research and education programs are coordinated on behalf of the Cattlemen’s Beef Board and state beef councils by the National Cattlemen’s Beef Association (NCBA). The NCBA serves as one of the Beef Board’s contractors for checkoff-funded programs.
Veal consumption is currently weighted heavily toward an older demographic, and the industry is aggressively seeking ways to appeal to younger consumers. One of the challenges in achieving this goal is to make sure veal is on the menu at more casual-dining restaurants, says Michael Mosner, a veal packer from the Bronx, NY, and chairman of the Joint Veal Committee.
“With families being on the move, both parents working, and children going to all sorts of activities, it’s hard for them to find time for dinner at home,” Mosner said. “And the casual dining restaurant is the venue where most young families are going.”
Mosner said the veal industry finds itself at a time when prices for dairy calves, feed prices and other operating costs are high. These factors make it even more critical that the industry find new ways to expand exposure and consumer demand for veal. He added that checkoff-funded programs give the veal industry important tools for achieving this goal.
Among the suggestions from veal industry representatives attending the Veal Long Range Planning meeting was to continue to concentrate on promoting veal in casual theme restaurants while focusing on veal’s image as an upscale meat. The recommendations eventually will be forwarded for consideration to the Joint Veal Committee and to the Beef Promotion Operating Committee, which oversees checkoff funding.
“We believe that any chain that wants to raise the level of their menu needs to include veal,’ said Mosner.
Checkoff-funded programs will continue to promote veal to casual theme restaurants by working with celebrity chefs to develop recipes. One such event will take place at the Culinary Institute of America in Hyde Park, N.Y., on May 5.
“The checkoff program has been, and hopefully will continue to be, an integral part of the veal industry,” Mosner said. “Without the checkoff, we certainly would not have the resources to operate the kind of programs we need to generate greater interest in veal, and to get veal into popular restaurants where it is not offered now.”
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 administers the national checkoff program, subject to USDA approval. 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.
Producer-directed and consumer-focused, the NCBA is the trade association of America’s cattle farmers and ranchers, and the marketing organization for the largest segment of the nation’s food and fiber industry.