BEEF CHECKOFF AUDIO NEWS
Aug. 20, 2007
Contact: Stephanie Darling, 303-850-3359; sdarling@beef.org
David Pelzer, 847-627-3233;david0@rosedmi.com
Beef And Dairy Checkoffs To Fund Scientific Studies On Product Nutrition
ANNCR:
Dairy and beef producers have joined forces through their respective checkoff programs to assure consumers get the straight story on nutrition issues. Here are comments from Tom Gallagher, CEO of Dairy Management Incorporated, or DMI, which manages the dairy checkoff program. Gallagher was in Denver last month for the Cattle Industry Conference and a symposium sponsored by DMI and the beef checkoff’s nutrition program.
Gallagher Cut #1 :27 Outcue: "...together to date."
“We have worked together on issues in crisis matters and on nutrition matters. But I think with the nutrition environment so heightened and with so much at stake for both beef and dairy farmers, that the work that the staffs have done together the last couple years on forming a nutrient rich coalition with other food companies, scientists and the government, this was a great opportunity to bring all that work together to date.”
ANNCR:
Gallagher said science is the foundation for collaborative nutritional partnerships.
Gallagher Cut #2 :18 Outcue: "...food choices possible."
“We have scientists from several companies, including beef and dairy, working together to guide science and to fund science which beef and dairy are jointly funding to create a nutrient rich system that helps guide consumers in making the best food choices possible.”
ANNCR: There are both joint and separate studies being undertaken, all with the same goal.
Gallagher Cut #3 :23 Outcue: "...fits all foods."
“Sometimes it will be joint research, and sometimes it will be specific pieces of protein or fat research – saturated fat and trans fat – that needs to be segmented because of the different properties of each product. But we are in one coalition, working on analyzing the nutrients within all foods in determining a food system that fits all foods.”
ANNCR:
Gallagher says the dairy and beef industries will be ready in 2010, when the government takes a look at dietary guidelines.
Gallagher Cut #4 :20 Outcue: "...of this coalition."
“In the short term, our objective is, by the time the 2010 Dietary Guidelines and Food Guide Pyramid are discussed by the government, which they do every five years, is that we will have a sound base of science with published reports in scientifically credible journals that will support the objectives of this coalition.”
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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. For more information, visit www.beefboard.org
Dairy Management Inc. ™ (DMI) is the non-profit domestic and international planning and management organization responsible for increasing sales of and demand for U.S.-produced dairy products and ingredients on behalf of America’s dairy producers. DMI manages the American Dairy Association®, National Dairy Council® and U.S. Dairy Export Council®.
The National Dairy Council® (NDC), DMI’s nutrition marketing arm, has been the leader in dairy nutrition research, education and communication since 1915. NDC provides timely, scientifically sound nutrition information to the media, physicians, dietitians, nurses, educators, consumers and others concerned about fostering a healthier society.
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