Beef Briefs: August 2012
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Look for Beef Briefs to be delivered the first of each month – your snapshot of beef checkoff news affecting the dairy and beef industries. Editor’s note: please feel free to use these news items as space allows in your publication or online content. If you would like to expand on a certain topic, please e-mail Melissa Slagle at mslagle@beefboard.org.
In case you missed it…
… Get the latest updates by “friending” MyBeefCheckoff on Facebook or following @MyBeefCheckoff on Twitter.
… Be sure to read all the updates from last week’s Cattle Industry Summer Conference on the MyBeefCheckoffMeeting blog.
… The "white-hot better-burger movement" is still a top trend in food. Read more here.
Making Headway with Consumer Perceptions
The latest checkoff-funded semiannual Consumer Beef Index survey shows increasingly positive perceptions about beef when it comes to nutrition, safety, taste and quality. The one factor pulling down overall satisfaction with beef is value perceptions. Read more about these consumer trends in “The consumer conundrum - Sink your teeth in to a great steak or grit your teeth about beef prices.”
Likewise, a recent survey about consumer perceptions indicates that consumers are rating beef higher in terms of safety. “Beef safety confidence remains strong” analyzes consumer ratings of beef versus other foods and the differing perceptions of food safety at supermarkets versus foodservice outlets.
And, for more recent marketing studies that have found a growing number of socially conscious consumers are placing more emphasis on “ethical” food and demanding transparency from producers to demonstrate ethical production, read more at Socially Conscious Consumers.
Zinc and Iron Intake for Older Infants
The first checkoff]funded study to provide a detailed examination of zinc absorption from different complementary feeding regimens in older breastfed infants was recently published. The researchers evaluated zinc absorption and status in 45 exclusively breastfed 9] to 10]month olds who were randomly assigned to different complementary feeding regimens: 1) IFC ] traditional iron fortified cereal plus dairy (cereal with iron only), 2) IZFC ] zinc and iron fortified traditional complementary foods plus dairy (cereal with zinc and iron), or 3) CF ] high zinc complementary foods (meat, mostly beef). The study’s data demonstrates that without the consumption of complementary foods that are naturally high in zinc or have been fortified with zinc, infants are very unlikely to reach the estimated physiologic requirement of 0.84 mg/d for this age.
Producer Support of Beef Checkoff Remains High
The nationwide survey of 900 beef and dairy producers conducted by the independent firm Aspen Media & Market Research in late June and early July 2012 found that an overwhelming majority of beef and dairy producers continue to believe that their beef checkoff has value for them in many ways.
Updates from the U.S. Farmers and Ranchers Alliance (USFRA)
- Faces of Farming and Ranching -- The USFRA, funded in part by the beef checkoff, continues to look for the “Faces of Farming and Ranching” to help put a real face on agriculture and shine a light on the heart, personalities and values that are behind today’s food. USFRA is kicking off a nationwide search of farmers and ranchers who can serve as the Faces of Farming and Ranching for a number of various national media, influencer and other public-facing opportunities. We need a national face to be part of these conversations and represent the real farmers and ranchers of America. Learn more here and enter today!
- Conversations with E.A.S.E. -- USFRA’s Conversation with EASE (Engage, Acknowledge, Share and Earn Trust) program is where farmers and ranchers can learn how to effectively join the conversation with consumers. Over 2,700 farmers and ranchers have been trained with this presentation. If you are interested in having a presentation made at an upcoming meeting, please contact Abby Rinne.
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 Cattlemens Beef Promotion and Research Board, which administers the national checkoff program, subject to USDA approval.
Funded by the Beef Checkoff.
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