Research
According to the Beef Act, research means studies relative to the effectiveness of market development and promotion efforts, studies relating to the nutritional value of beef and beef products, other related food science research including beef safety and pathogen research, product-enhancement research, market research and new product development research. Checkoff-funded research aims to maintain and increase consumer confidence in beef and beef products and provides the basis for development of program focus in all areas of checkoff investment by measuring market demands and tracking the state of the industry. The checkoff cannot fund cattle production research.
Research Overviews
Three new one-page overviews of vital product enhancement research topics now are posted on the checkoff’s beef research Web site. Overview topics include tenderness, aging, and muscle profiling and give references to more in-depth publications printed with checkoff funding.
In addition, eight project snapshots of checkoff-funded market research now are available for download from the checkoff’s research Web site. The latest additions include: A Review of Three Research Projects Related to Safety, Healthy Convenient Beef Product Concepts and Primal Optimization Project – Carcass Outlier Concept Development.
Strengthening Safety Programs
Checkoff-funded research on Beef Lipids and Beef Protein Advantages in Healthy Living was presented at the recent joint meeting of the American Society of Animal Sciences and American Dairy Science Association. To access the abstracts from these checkoff reports, go to Abstracts.
For additional information, check out these sites:
Consumers looking for nutrition and dietary information about beef can go to www.beefnutrition.org to order or download materials and research information, or find a schedule of nutrition events and seminars, and.
Consumers, producers and other industry professionals can go to www.beefresearch.org for summaries of checkoff-funded research in the areas of beef safety, human nutrition, product enhancement and market research, projects which provide the foundation for checkoff programs in promotion, marketing, education, information and foreign marketing.
Safety is a priority of the beef industry and www.bifsco.org, houses information about the Beef Industry Food Safety Council (BIFSCo), its discussions and meetings, an application to join the council, and consumer information about beef safety.
Finding new convenient cuts is one very successful way the checkoff has helped add value to the beef carcass over the years. In cooperation with the University of Nebraska-Lincoln, http://bovine.unl.edu/ is the industry’s primary beef cut resource.
Checkoff-funded Beef Quality Assurance program information is available at www.bqa.org where you can find systematic information about coupling proper animal-husbandry techniques with accepted scientific knowledge to improve the quality of the end beef products.
Bovine Spongiform Encephalopathy (BSE) is a misunderstood but potentially serious animal disease. For the most accurate information, turn to www.bseinfo.org, an informational site housing current information regarding for consumers, producers and beef industry representatives.
While never occurring in the United States, www.fmdinfo.org is an informational site housing current information regarding foot-and-mouth disease for consumers, producers and beef industry representatives.
Funded by the Beef Checkoff.