BEEF INDUSTRY AND ENVIRONMENTAL GROUPS WORK TOGETHER

     DENVER, Colo., (August 7, 1997) -- The nation's most prestigious award
for environmental achievement in the beef industry is a unique
collaboration between the beef industry and environmental groups.  The
National Cattlemen's Beef Association announced Park Avenue by Buick will
sponsor the annual Environmental Stewardship Award.
    
     "We're pleased to partner with such a diverse group of organizations
interested in the environment, along with Buick, in this very important
program," said Max Deets, Beloit, Kan., NCBA president.  "The Environmental
Stewardship Award Program recognizes those outstanding individuals in our
industry who go the extra mile for the environment and are great
representatives of our industry to those outside beef production," he said.
    
     The Environmental Stewardship Award Program (ESAP) was initiated in
1991 to recognize beef producers who work to improve and protect the
productivity of their land while improving the profitability of their
businesses. The award is presented by a selection committee which includes
the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, American Sportsfishing Association, The
Nature Conservancy, Natural Resources Conservation Service, Environmental
Protection Agency and the American Farmland Trust, as well as
representatives from the beef industry and academia.
    
     Each year, one of several regional winners is selected as the national
winner.  The 1998 ESAP national winner will be announced at the NCBA
Centennial Convention in Denver, Colo., February 4-7, 1998.  The winner
will be selected from among six regional winners: Lubben White Oak Farm,
Monticello, Iowa; Triple W Farms, Marion, Kentucky; Honeywood Farm,
Barnesville, Georgia; Rafter D Ranch and Dunkin Farms, Tulsa, Oklahoma;
Three Quarter Circle Ranch, Lander, Wyoming; and Vigen Ranch, Killdeer,
North Dakota.
    
     Initiated in 1898, the National Cattlemen's Beef Association is the
marketing organization and trade association for America's one million
cattle farmers and ranchers.  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.
    
                                -- NCBA --