Beef USA -

Telling Beef’s Story Critical to Industry

NCBA — Fri, 19 Oct 2012 00:00:00 GMT

If you work in agriculture, chances are most consumers have no idea what you do. That’s a challenge, according to Gary Teague, who with his family operates a diversified livestock and farming operation in Northeast Colorado.

For years as the industry we’ve taken a hands-off approach, ‘hey, we’re going to go out here and we’re going to do what we’re going to do and do it well and we’re not going to talk about it.’ And so now we have an uninformed, uneducated consumer that we’ve really got to work back into and explain the process, as to why we do those things. (17 seconds)

Teague recently spoke at a seminar for consumers sponsored by Colorado State University and the Beef Checkoff Program through the Colorado Beef Council. He says the industry itself has to move the ball forward.

As producers and anybody associated with the industry, we’ve got to do a better job of getting out in front of the public and consumers and talk about production practices, why we do ‘em, what we’re doing, what the benefits of what we actually do are to the consumer. And I think that if we do that. And I think if we do that it will help all of us. (20 seconds)

According to Teague, the Beef Checkoff Program can play a role in this.

Just like the checkoff back in the 80s, where we went in and we looked at what the problems that consumers were seeing, we surveyed those consumers and found out what needed to be done and went and looked at that. We can do the same thing here. Let’s go out and talk to the consumer and find out what their concerns are and then go about addressing those concerns through research and through education. (19 seconds)

State beef councils all over the country are helping to tell the industry’s story, using the half of checkoff dollars that remain at the control of their boards. Teague says giving state beef councils and the national checkoff a role in this process is critical.

The checkoff is one of those programs where there’s huge benefits that have come out. If anything I think we should have a much stronger checkoff program because, hey, that’s the lifeblood of our industry. We’re selling a product. We need to have an educated consumer to sell that product to. And the checkoff is the easiest way to do that. (17 seconds)

The Beef Checkoff Program collects $1-per-head on bovine animals at the time of sale, with Qualified State Beef Councils allowed to retain 50 cents of each dollar for in-state, national and international checkoff programs at their discretion. The checkoff is administered by the Cattlemen’s Beef Board with oversight provided by the U.S. Department of Agriculture.

Producers on Federation Help Plan for Future at Summer Conference

NCBA — Wed, 01 Aug 2012 00:00:00 GMT

Directors on the Federation of State Beef Councils were among the more than 700 producers wrestling with issues at the 2012 Cattle Industry Summer Conference the week of July 23. Jennifer Houston is a beef producer and auction market owner/operator from Sweetwater, Tenn., and serves as a vice president of the Federation representing Region Two of the National Cattlemen’s Beef Association. Serving as a member of the Joint Advertising Committee, she says the Summer Conference is where producers roll up their sleeves to recommend programs for the coming year.

This is where really we sit down; for example yesterday on the Advertising Committee we actually evaluated three new – four, actually – new proposed ad campaigns, and made a decision to bring to the Operating Committee this September. So it’s really down in the dirt with the grassroots making decisions. (17 seconds)

Houston says the structure of the Beef Checkoff, which was established as part of the 1985 Farm Bill, allows representatives from states to provide significant input into the $1-per-head program that funds research, education and promotion programs that increase consumer demand for beef.

We sort of bring the state perspective of the 50 cents that stays in our state, whereas the Cattlemen’s Beef Board, we can consider them the other half of the dollar that goes to national, and we come back together on the Operating Committee, which is made up of 10 people from the Cattlemen’s Beef Board, 10 people representing state beef councils; truly it brings the state and national dollars together, because at the state beef councils, we can choose to send some of the 50 cents that we keep in our state to the national to further carry out national programs or to buy goods and services that we use back in the states to carry out our programs, in my example, in Tennessee. (40 seconds)

According to Houston, the relationship between the Federation of State Beef Councils and the Cattlemen’s Beef Board is an important one.

It’s a good relationship. Again, we both have the careful and wise use of your checkoff dollars – and our checkoff dollars – at heart. And I think each of us take that to heart very seriously. The Cattlemen’s Beef Board has more of an oversight role, and I think the state beef council’s, the Federation’s point of view is more, most of us do serve, and all of us have served, on our state beef councils, and we see exactly how it’s carried out in our states. So I think we bring two perspectives that work together to do the best job that we can with your checkoff dollars. (33 seconds)

The national Beef Checkoff Program is administered by the Cattlemen’s Beef Board subject to USDA approval.

Pounding the Pavement to the Extreme Calls for Beef

NCBA — Fri, 18 May 2012 00:00:00 GMT

Dane Rauschenberg is a runner who doesn’t tackle things half way. When he decided to run the Oregon Coast in April – all 350 miles of it – he put a time limit on his effort: one week. Supported by the beef councils of Oregon, California and Washington, as well as by a beef checkoff-funded grant from the Federation of State Beef Councils, Rauschenberg says his quest, which went from the California to the Washington borders, was one that had no precedent.

"No one had ever run the entire coast of Oregon that I could find, so it was difficult to find any particular advice. The planning was just to try to get myself into the best shape possible long, long term – months and months in advance, so I was eating properly and doing the correct amount of preparation." (17 seconds)

Rauschenberg says the run, which amounted to almost two marathons a day, also included educational opportunities for students along the way.

"We would stop at schools every single day and talk to kids about exercising and eating healthy. And questions always came around to, ‘What do you eat, Dane?’, and I always told them about the wonderful message about the power of protein, the 29 lean beef cuts that fueled me through the 350-mile run." (19 seconds)

According to Rauschenberg, while the effort is mind-boggling, there is nothing magical about what he has done.

"I know that it requires a lot of simple things, which people always (mistake) for the right pill, the right diet, the right exercise regimen, but what it really is, is eating properly, and exercising. I owe a lot to genetics. I know that a lot of people can’t do some of the things that I do, but we don’t know what we can do until we put our minds to it." (22 seconds)

Rauschenberg says a friend once told him that good health doesn’t start in the gym or on the track.

"She always said that abs always start in the kitchen. And by that she meant that you can do all the exercise you want but if you’re not fueling the machine properly you might as well forget it. And that is why I’m helping to promote eating lean beef because I really believe it’s the reason why, this weekend I’ll be running my 140th marathon, and I’ve never had a running injury. It’s because I fuel myself with the zinc, the iron, the protein that make it possible for me to continue on." (26 seconds)

Several state beef councils have worked with Rauschenberg in promoting beef through marathons or other runs in their states. The message about the power of beef remains the same, while the miles just keep pouring on.

2011 Federation Chairman Says Division’s Identity Strengthened in Past Year

NCBA — Mon, 13 Feb 2012 00:00:00 GMT

Directors on the Federation of State Beef Councils at the National Cattlemen’s Beef Association met at the 2012 Cattle Industry Convention in Nashville recently to review projects being conducted through the Beef Checkoff Program. David Dick, a beef producer from Sedalia, Missouri, who was the 2011 chairman of the Federation, says he is proud of the work Federation directors have done, and proudest of their efforts to make sure producers know the Federation’s role in the work of the checkoff.

The Federation has been around since 1963, and everyone kind of knows it’s there, kind of maybe can connect with their state beef council and that it’s part of that, but they’re really not quite sure what it is. And these folks have stepped forward in a number of instances and in a number of different ways and have made Federation identity possible. And I think that is probably the best thing they could have done because people start to connect with the fact that it is people that they know, and that it is maybe something they want to be a part of. (32 seconds)

Dick says the relationship of the Federation with the Cattlemen’s Beef Board is healthy, and that organizational disagreements during the year weren’t all bad.

The issues that we went through, I would have to say probably made the Federation infinitely stronger than it was before, and the positive side of that is we learned a lot about ourselves in the process. I think it’s the basis to move forward into different things. And I don’t mean that to be outside of what the checkoff is, but you know things don’t stay the same. And so as this world changes and we need to know about how we produce our food, where it comes from, the nutritive value of that, those are all things that the checkoff is a part of and does well. So with this identity now we’ll be able to move those projects forward in a much better way. (38 seconds)

According to Dick, producers are needed to keep the checkoff program on track and headed in the right direction, and getting involved as a volunteer at the state level is a start at getting involved in something that’s important to the industry.

I had two grandfathers who were passionate about, if you produce something you need to be a part of promoting it, whether it’s corn or whether it’s cattle or hogs or whatever. So, at an early age that was instilled in me, that if you believe in what you’re doing you promote that. So you need to get involved with your state beef council, work in their committee structure, get involved in national committees then, the joint committees with the Federation and the CBB. The things that you’ll learn and the folks that you’ll meet will far outstrip what you’ll ever believe, and you just invest yourself in the process and it’ll provide you with a reward. (37 seconds)

Dick says producers should be confident that their checkoff dollars are being spent efficiently at every level and in every organization.

Your federation directors are very aware that they are the connect between the farmers and ranchers that pay the checkoff. They’re also very studious with that dollar. And their fiduciary responsibility they take very seriously. They look constantly at not only that they handle the dollars correctly but that they invest them wisely as well, to get a return, whether it’s a research project, advertising campaign, whatever it may be, so that you get the best bang for the buck. (31 seconds)

States, National Checkoff Efforts Combine Forces in Retail Marketing Program

NCBA — Tue, 29 Nov 2011 00:00:00 GMT

A new checkoff-funded retail marketing program called Beef Alternative Marketing – or BAM – is starting to catch the attention of retailers around the country. The program has identified cutting and marketing techniques for creating smaller fillets and roasts out of the beef ribeyes, loins and top sirloins.

Heather Buckmaster is executive director of the Oklahoma Beef Council. She says the OBC got involved with the nationally-developed program because it had unique methods of extending the program.

“We have a great retailer in the Oklahoma market – Homeland – who’s willing to try new things, so we were able to come in and provide additional dollars into the program, when the first launched the BAM program. So you’ve to have the right opportunity and the right retailer, and we had those ingredients in Oklahoma .” (18 seconds)

According to Buckmaster, the BAM program works to sell more beef by aiming its message toward consumers who may spend their dollars elsewhere.

“What this kind of program does is really lay the groundwork for foundational growth, foundational merchandising. It really helps that consumer identify those cuts where maybe they wouldn’t have bought beef otherwise, because they were looking for smaller portions and smaller cuts, and this is what this program does for them.” (17 seconds)

Buckmaster says that it’s only with a coordinated national-state partnership that success in programs like Beef Alternative Marketing can succeed.

“We really need that expertise that comes in from the national; that they create the programs, then we’re able to execute them on a state level. So really having that partnership is invaluable. We’re not all re-creating the wheel. We’re all spokes in that same wheel.” (15 seconds)

The partnership works to provide national recommendations and information in all program areas.

“We always have somebody there to help us, whether it’s foodservice, retail, advertising. Anything that we’re doing, that resource is there. And then we’re there on the ground with boots on the ground, in the particular states, to execute those programs.” (13 seconds)

According to Buckmaster, beef producers nationwide who want more information on what their checkoff is about should contact the beef council in their state.

“Really get to know how that relationship works because I think it’s been core to the success of the beef checkoff.” (6 seconds)