On this episode of The Drive in Five, see how the Beef Checkoff drives beef demand in cities like New York, Boston, Philadelphia and more through the Northeast Beef Promotion Initiative. Also, get the scoop on FY25 funding and upcoming programs.
On this episode of The Drive in Five, see how the Beef Checkoff drives beef demand in cities like New York, Boston, Philadelphia and more through the Northeast Beef Promotion Initiative. Also, get the scoop on FY25 funding and upcoming programs.
New York City, Washington D.C., Boston, Philadelphia and Hartford are among the major metropolitan cities in the Northeast. Home to nearly 74 million consumers with people outnumbering cattle 16:1, this area, extends from Maine to Virginia. Less than 2.7 percent of total Beef Checkoff assessments are collected within the region, and six of the 12 states do not have a local State Beef Council. So, how does the Beef Checkoff extend beef promotion into the heavily populated Northeast region with limited State Beef Council support? Enter the Northeast Beef Promotion Initiative (NEBPI) as the key to amplifying beef’s presence.
As a subcontractor through Beef Checkoff contractor Meat Import Council of America (MICA), NEBPI is housed within the Pennsylvania Beef Council and builds beef demand in the Northeast metros, covering Connecticut, Delaware, District of Columbia, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, Vermont, Virginia and West Virginia, through supply chain engagement, consumer outreach and work with nutrition experts.
In the early 2000s, the gap between limited Beef Checkoff dollar resources and a growing population of consumers in the Northeast became apparent, creating a clear opportunity to channel nationally collected Beef Checkoff dollars into this region. Here’s how the program got started and evolved throughout the years:
2004: Representatives from various Qualified State Beef Councils (QSBC) and industry organizations in the Northeast joined to discuss the opportunity to initiate a program specifically designed to channel national Beef Checkoff resources to that region.
2005: The first funding was awarded by the Beef Promotion Operating Committee (BPOC).
2012: The first QSBC funding partner invested additional dollars for regional programming efforts.
2015: Additional QSBC partners gathered resources together to further the impact of programming.
2024: During the nineteenth consecutive year executing programming, NEBPI continues to share return-on-investment numbers with six QSBC funding partners and works to meet the needs for beef promotion and education in the Northeast.
As the go-to resource for all things beef on the menu and in the meat case, NEBPI collaborates with Northeast retail and foodservice partners. By building relationships with culinary schools, retail and foodservice professionals, e-commerce companies, and by partnering on regional beef campaigns, such as mobile pre-shopping apps, NEBPI ensures a positive beef purchasing experience and drives beef sales.
Bridging the gap between Northeast consumers and valuable beef resources, NEBPI highlights beef’s flavor, nutrient density, versatility and the integrity of cattle producers. NEBPI aims to reach and engage with metro consumers through Beef Checkoff-funded digital campaigns and in-person events, with an increased focus on high school and collegiate athletics.
To empower health professionals with evidence-based nutrition science, NEBPI builds connections with health professionals and educators, helping them feel confident when recommending beef within their circles of influence. NEBPI grows relationships with key health professionals by hosting qualified speakers to share the science behind beef’s nutritional profile. NEBPI also coordinates engaging immersion events to drive home key beef nutrition messages.
To successfully execute the core program areas, NEBPI must first understand the Northeast consumer and their buying habits. In 2023, the Northeast Dashboard Survey1 revealed important information about the Northeast consumer. Here are key findings for the region:
1. Consumers in the Northeast are actively eating beef, with most
(72%) doing so at least once a week, and they are unlikely to change their consumption habits in the future.
2. Consumers in the Northeast seem more nutrition-oriented since their top three consideration factors when choosing a meal with protein are taste, value for money and health.
3. Twenty-nine percent of consumers purchased beef directly from a beef producer at least once. The main driver for those purchases is to receive a better-quality product, followed by the desire to support the local economy.
Consumers across the Northeast region may be motivated to increase their beef consumption if they have access to more recipe ideas and cooking methods, specifically those that are healthy, quick and easy. These consumers express greater interest in knowing where their beef comes from, learning about local beef farmers and ranchers, and receiving nutritional materials and relevant safety information.
Northeast consumer attitudes toward beef as a protein source are more favorable than their attitudes toward production practices. Overall, perceptions are lower than reported nationally, with more negativity towards raising cattle. These perceptions might be lower due to limited knowledge of the production process.
Nearly 30% of consumers have purchased beef products directly from a farm in the Northeast and do so because they believe they receive better-quality products and want to support the local economy.
Following this survey, NEBPI revealed opportunities for continued success. Beef Checkoff-funded programs will share more quick-and- easy beef recipes, highlight beef’s positive story, show how cattle are raised responsibly and feature the Northeast Beef Directory as a resource for locating local beef producers.
To learn more about NEBPI, visit NEBPI.org
Science teachers on farms? Yep, it’s happening. An On The Farm STEM event in Kentucky, hosted by Beef Checkoff contractor, the American Farm Bureau Foundation for Agriculture (AFBFA), offered teachers a chance to see beef producers in action. Now, they’re taking that experience back to their classrooms to show the next generation what it means to produce beef the right way. By connecting with the young minds of schoolchildren through their teachers, the Beef Checkoff engages with tomorrow’s beef consumers today.
This summer, 25 educators — including classroom teachers, district leaders, university professors and representatives from partner organizations — participated in a three-and-a-half-day immersive beef production experience in Kentucky. The group, representing 20 states and a diverse range of educational environments — from rural, suburban K-12 schools to urban and post-secondary institutions — gained valuable insights into the beef industry.
Attendees visited Branch View Angus, the University of Kentucky, Eden Shale Farm, Blue Grass Stockyards and What Chefs Want, a wholesale restaurant food distributor. Prior to the event, participants attended virtual webinars on ‘Science Through the Lens of Agriculture,’ ‘Exploring Sensemaking Using Topics in Agriculture’ and ‘Using Agriculture Topics to Drive Learning in Science.’
These tours and webinars offered educators the opportunity to deepen their understanding of equitable, three-dimensional learning within the context of agriculture, helping them integrate agricultural concepts into diverse educational settings.
“We aim for educators to recognize the importance of food and agriculture in science education, gain confidence in implementing next generation science standards-aligned practices and summarize agricultural systems,” said Brian Beierle, the science and education lead for AFBFA. “Ultimately, the goal was for educators to leave with a concrete plan to incorporate agriculture-based, specifically beef-funded agriculture resources into their classrooms within a year.”
In a post-event survey, participants rated their experience highly, giving it an average score of 4.8 out of 5. Most reported a significant increase in their understanding of beef production as a result of the event. Before the event, only 12 percent of participants held a positive view of how cattle are raised. However, following the On The Farm STEM experience, that number soared to 75 percent, with participants expressing a ‘strongly positive’ perception of cattle production practices.
“The most impactful thing was to see individuals who are experts in what they do, to have the opportunity to see what they do, to hear how they do it and to learn from them,” one event participant said. Another said, “The event gave a complete picture of the beef industry, from birth to shelf – and all the environmental impacts were addressed.”
Originally, On the Farm STEM began as an event for children’s book authors. However, as AFBFA identified educational needs, they recognized the potential for an immersive experience connecting educators to the science behind beef production, efficiency, sustainability and resilience in agriculture. The demand for On The Farm STEM events has skyrocketed, with a 325 percent increase in applications since 2020.
Early iterations of the event focused primarily on tours, but the program has since evolved into a balanced blend of hands-on experiences and academic support. “We now work closely with educators to tailor the experience to their local curriculum demands and provide them with resources for direct implementation,” Beierle said.
Also, the program has grown to include state-level events. Events took place last summer in New York, Colorado and Kansas, with plans to equip more state beef councils to partner with educational agencies at the local level to further scale the event.
“Today, the program is regarded as a leading professional development opportunity for teachers, meeting the evolving needs of educational systems,” Beierle said. “On top of that, the program opens doors for students — through their teachers — to college and career pathways they might not have otherwise known about. This can lead to some pretty significant outcomes: a more diverse future workforce, more room for innovation and future consumers who are better equipped to navigate conflicting claims. It’s all about opening dialogue between agricultural communities and education to create lasting, beneficial partnerships.”
For more information about the On The Farm STEM experience visit www.onthefarmstem.com
As the official sponsor of the Perfect Home Plate with Little League, Checkoff-funded Beef. It’s What’s For Dinner. (BIWFD) is making mealtime easier with delicious, balanced recipe inspiration, perfect for busy sports families navigating a hectic schedule. This partnership is helping families keep their young athletes fueled from the classroom to the practice field to game day.
The decision to partner with Little League Baseball and Softball, the largest youth sports organization in the world with more than two million players, was a strategic move by BIWFD to meaningfully connect active families with information about beef’s nutrition, ease of use and incredible taste. This partnership introduces a younger generation to beef’s benefits and positions BIWFD alongside other leading consumer brands.
BIWFD hosted a welcome dinner for all twenty teams participating in the Little League World Series (LLWS) in Williamsport, Pennsylvania. Between players, coaches and families, 400 people were in attendance. The meal highlighted beef’s high-quality protein and nutrient package and was a chance for these athletes to bond over a shared experience while fueling up for their games.
As an official sponsor, BIWFD’s presence at the LLWS went beyond the dinner. During pitching changes, signage appeared throughout the ballpark, including a unique in-game feature named the “Call to the Bullpen” that prominently displayed the BIWFD logo. This branding effort reached the 300,000 attendees who were present during the game, along with the millions of fans tuning in on TV via ESPN and ABC broadcasts. Between the in-person promotions and TV coverage, beef’s message was seen by consumers more than 2.1 million times during the LLWS.
Beyond in-person events and promotions at the LLWS, BIWFD has been promoting this partnership since April 2024. Beginning with an informational hub on BIWFD’s website, this webpage focused on educating Little League parents and families on beef’s nutritional value, great taste and the positive role it can have in an active lifestyle. Recipes were also featured from quick and easy weeknight meals to crowd-pleasing team dinners. Since launching, more than 60,000 people have visited the hub.
This informational hub was showcased through digital, e-mail and social media advertising efforts. Video advertisements, like “Knock Dinner Out of the Park with Beef,” were delivered to families across the U.S. and motivated them to visit the hub for more beef information and recipes. Additionally, media releases on the Little League partnership reached 549 news outlets with a potential audience of 217 million consumers. Through these multiple efforts, the informational hub has been shared with 2.2+ million consumers.
This partnership educated players, families and fans about beef’s nutrition package, and showcased beef’s convenience and versatility, as well as how it makes mealtime quick and easy. Checkoff-funded efforts will continue to connect with new audiences and generations so they can come to know and love beef.
Learn more about Beef. It’s What’s For Dinner. and how families are stepping up their game with beef at www.beefitswhatsfordinner.com/little-league.
Today, approximately 400 veal farms are located in the U.S. These veal producers also pay into the Beef Checkoff, which helps the Beef Checkoff-funded National Veal Program. Managed by the Beef Checkoff contractor, Meat Institute, and subcontractor New York Beef Council (NYBC), this team produces promotional campaigns and develops educational pieces to increase consumers’ interest and trust in veal.
Here’s how the consumer-facing brand Veal – Discover Delicious capitalizes on veal’s unique taste, value and versatility through social media, e-commerce and more.
E-commerce continues to grow at a rapid pace. Looking at grocery data, projections indicate that e-commerce will make up 20 percent of the grocery market by 20261. The Veal – Discover Delicious team has capitalized on this growing trend of online food shopping.
In a partnership with Giant Eagle, a regional supermarket chain with more than 470 locations in Ohio, Pennsylvania, West Virginia, Maryland and Indiana, a digital campaign beginning in March and running until the end of May encouraged consumers to purchase veal. More than 669,000 consumers explored veal options and 550 veal units were sold.
Veal – Discover Delicious also leverages social media to provide consumers with engaging content about veal meal solutions, nutrition information, preparation and veal versatility.
Last spring, the team launched its first TikTok ads, which were delivered to consumers more than 100,000 times, resulting in 1,282 link clicks to Veal.org. Across Facebook, Instagram and YouTube, digital ad campaigns also garnered impressive performance, with nearly 3,000 link clicks and more than 67,000 views.
The goal of these social media efforts is to attract veal customers to Veal.org to explore recipes, receive veal information and purchase veal products. During the time period of April to June 2024, Veal.org reached 42,531 unique users.
Another fun, exciting tactic Veal – Discover Delicious is executing is a partnership with Homemade Cooking. Managed by professional chefs, Homemade Cooking offers free online cooking classes.
Beginning in March, Veal – Discover Delicious kicked off the 2024 Culinary Series with Homemade and featured four cooking classes: Herb-Crusted Rack of Veal, Green Chile Enchiladas, Banh Mi Burgers and Lemony Veal Schnitzel. The first class attracted 870 registered participants. In these classes, attendees not only learn how to cook a delicious recipe but also learn about the difference between veal and other beef products by emphasizing its tenderness and mild, adaptable flavor.
Re-watch the classes on homemadecooking.com
Veal – Discover Delicious also fosters relationships with chefs and food service partners and decision-makers to educate them about how to successfully utilize veal in their professional capacities.
One event in which Veal – Discover Delicious participated was the American Culinary Federation Webinar. Here, 110 chefs and culinary professionals listened to the Beef Checkoff’s veal team explain the ins and outs of the veal industry, veal cuts and price points, as well as how to incorporate veal into their menus.
It’s important that this group of professionals understand veal’s benefits and can advocate for the industry. At these events, attendees learn how veal is distinctive in the meat space. A three-ounce serving of cooked, trimmed, lean veal has just about 170 calories, making it one of the most nutrient-dense protein foods around2.
Also, veal provides 29 percent of the recommended daily intake of zinc, 36 percent of niacin and 23 percent of vitamin B-12. In short, it provides a fat and calorie profile similar to chicken but with the nutrient density of beef3.
Although veal represents a small portion of the protein market, it plays a significant role in the U.S. beef and dairy industries and helps contribute to the Beef Checkoff. As such, the Beef Checkoff actively works to share the progressive message of veal’s protein strength, versatility, transparency and sustainability.
To learn more about the National Veal Program and access educational resources, visit: Veal.org.
Culinary arts are at the core of the Beef Checkoff because, at the end of the day, the ultimate measure of consumer support and satisfaction lies in beef’s great eating experience. The Beef Checkoff is a leading voice and resource for beef culinary knowledge, experiences and innovation worldwide. This vision comes to life within the Checkoff-funded Beef. It’s What’s For Dinner. Culinary Center.
Located inside the National Cattlemen’s Beef Association’s (NCBA) headquarters in Centennial, Colorado, the Culinary Center is so much more than a kitchen – it’s a hub for fostering innovation and culinary exploration. Many Beef Checkoff-funded programs and initiatives are housed in this space, including new recipe development and cooking techniques, exploration of new cuts and technologies, influencer and chef partnerships, media tours and foodservice innovation sessions. Whether directly or indirectly, all Beef Checkoff-funded programs, from promotion to research to consumer information, leverage the data and insights generated at the Culinary Center.
The official Beef Checkoff Culinary Program launched when the National Livestock and Meat Board and the National Cattlemen’s Association merged in 1996. The Culinary Center initially operated at the NCA office in Chicago before being relocated to Centennial, Colorado, in 2001.
From the beginning, the program has led to the development of hundreds of culinary publications, along with countless cooking demonstrations, product tests and many educational seminars. Now, the program’s culinarians and chefs are conducting webinars. Historically, more than 2,500 beef recipes have been developed, changing over time to fit consumer cooking trends and preferences.
Currently, there are more than 1,000 active recipes on the Beef Checkoff-funded Beef. It’s What’s For Dinner. website, most of them developed by the Checkoff’s culinary team and the rest by influencer chefs and industry professionals. The Beef. It’s What’s For Dinner. website receives 8.8 million visitors annually.
On average, the culinary team develops 25 recipes each year. These recipes are typically in line with seasonal campaigns, like the upcoming Beef. It’s What’s For Dinner. Summer Grilling campaign, where inspirational recipes will be categorized as Grilling Favorites, The Tastiest Burgers, BBQ for You or Flavorful Smoked Beef Recipes.
The Beef. It’s What’s For Dinner. website is the central location for all recipes. In addition to recipes, cooking guides, and other consumer information, there are cutting guides, cut charts, menu inspirations and additional culinary information for industry professionals.
Promotion and advertising efforts — from social media to traditional print consumer publications to commercials on streaming services like Hulu and Paramount+ — drive people back to the Beef. It’s What’s For Dinner. website. There, consumers are inspired to try new recipes and purchase beef.
CULINARY TEAM EXPERTISEToday, the Culinary Center has grown and evolved from its relatively humble beginnings, featuring consumer and foodservice food production and testing. Two in-house executive chefs share duties, with one focusing on consumers and the other concentrating on business-to-business efforts.
The Executive Chef of Innovation and Culinary Services leads the culinary catering and recipe development functions as well as product culinary exploration.
The Executive Chef of Outreach and Education provides culinary expertise, content development and education to culinary professionals throughout the beef industry, including restaurant operators, food service distributors, retailers and manufacturers. This chef also works with culinary educators and state and national culinary associations.
In addition to recipe development, the culinary team extensively researches beef cuts, looking for new ways to apply cooking techniques like the use of pressure cookers, and how to better the craft of beef preparation. The practice of “beef cookery” also takes place, testing and developing optimum cooking times for various cuts of beef. Not all people want a recipe; they may want guidance on how to cook a particular cut, such as a steak on the grill, or safe food handling techniques. Contributors like Ph.D. meat scientists also come in to advise on new cuts and cooking exploration, and nutritionists counsel on nutrition values.
The executive chefs and culinary team also collaborate with notable chefs and leading culinary experts from around the globe to provide consumers with highly engaging content and reliable beef information.
Beef. It’s What’s For Dinner. partners with celebrity chefs, culinary instructors and other subject matter experts to create educational and inspirational content for consumer audiences. These partnerships result in multiple video series filmed in the Culinary Center and released on YouTube, social media platforms and streaming services. The videos highlight the pleasurable eating experience and versatility of beef. Recent video series have showcased familiar and famous chefs to attract viewers through:
ULINARY CENTER EVENTS Foodservice innovation sessions are also happening in the Culinary Center. Leading companies from quick service restaurants to fast casual to manufacturer partners have worked with the Culinary Center to get help with menu development, explore current trends and market insights, experiment with new cuts and cooking methods or expand existing beef items into new menu concepts. The Beef Checkoff collaborates with a restaurant’s executive team to explore ways to improve existing beef menu items or create new items to increase customer satisfaction and beef sales.
Additionally, educational webinars for industry partners and State Beef Councils, inspiration demonstrations, ideation sessions, cutting and cooking demonstrations, influencer video sessions, recipe photography, educational videos and tours all happen at the Culinary Center.
Another compelling use of the Culinary Center are satellite media tours, or SMTs. During these sessions, TV and radio stations nationwide dial into the Culinary Center to join the Beef. It’s What’s For Dinner. team and chat with beef subject matter experts, chefs and nutritionists about a predetermined, newsworthy topic that often also includes beef recipes. Three to four media tours occur annually, with topics ranging from heart health, tailgating, back to school, sustainability, summer grilling and the holidays, among others.
During a typical media tour, TV and radio broadcasters conduct approximately 20-25 interviews within a number of hours. These interviews are redistributed and posted multiple times, resulting in more than 1,000 placements on TV, radio and online.
These cumulative efforts drive beef sales and boost consumers’ positive perception of beef. In addition to national efforts, the Beef. It’s What’s For Dinner. team also leverages culinary programs on the state level.
State Beef Councils utilize the Beef. It’s What’s For Dinner. team to develop recipes, conduct educational webinars for influencers or industry partners, assist with various on-site events and consult on recipes and other culinary needs. New this year, the culinary team will be supporting State Beef Councils with recipes specifically developed for their market needs. The goal is to create eight new recipes directly supporting the states this year.
From its inception to its present-day initiatives, the Culinary Center is a hub for innovation and collaboration, shaping the landscape for the Beef Checkoff’s promotional efforts and driving beef sales.
Explore all the beef recipes and resources at BeefItsWhatsForDinner.com.
Did you know that 81 percent of consumers trust branded sponsorships at sporting events4? The Beef Checkoff aligns beef and athletics — especially in the highly populated Northeast region near New York City — through partnerships with college and high school sports teams. The Northeast Beef Promotion Initiative (NEBPI), a subcontractor to the Beef Checkoff, spearheads this effort to reach athletes and fans alike with positive beef messaging.
Integrating beef messaging into athletics is a “surround-sound approach,” meaning the partnership’s components — like on-site and in-game fan interaction, digital ads, social media content and student-athlete engagement — run consistently throughout the athletic season.
This approach provides a greater return on Beef Checkoff investments than a one-time event sponsorship. Reaching consumers multiple times throughout the athletic season keeps beef top of mind and extends trust and confidence in beef safety, nutrition and eating experience.
“The goal of these partnerships is to drive a greater understanding of beef by aligning with and capitalizing on the loyalty fans have for their sports teams,” said Kaitlyn Swope, NEBPI’s director of consumer affairs. “This is an opportunity for ‘always-on’ programming efforts, driving a greater return on producers’ investment.”
Checkoff-funded sports sponsorships began in 2019 when NEBPI partnered with Penn State’s sports properties, supported by the Iowa Beef Industry Council (IBIC) and Colorado Beef Council (CBC.) This collaboration came to life during football season in various ways:
The Penn State partnership continued into 2021 and 2022.
In an ongoing effort to evolve and diversify the program by reaching new audiences, NEBPI began a partnership with Seton Hall athletics during the 2021-2022 season, with support from the IBIC. This sponsorship resulted in naming beef the “Preferred Protein of the Seton Hall Pirates,” and continued into the 2023 season as well.
Located in South Orange, New Jersey, Seton Hall University is less than 20 miles from the heart of New York City. This partnership allowed the Beef Checkoff to reach more than 800,000 Seton Hall Pirates fans throughout the New York market area.
Fans saw beef messaging in many ways throughout the Pirates’ athletic season. More than 145,000 fans attended Seton Hall’s home basketball games at the Prudential Center where they saw in-arena beef signage and had the chance to win a beef prize pack during the Pirates’ shuffle video board game. Additionally, this partnership included:
Beef promotion efforts also make an impact in high school athletics. During the 2022-2023 athletic season, NEBPI entered the high school athletics realm for the first time by partnering with the Pennsylvania Interscholastic Athletic Association (PIAA), funded by the Montana Beef Council. This partnership continued into the 2023-2024 season.
PIAA reaches more than 350,000 students, coaches, athletic directors, trainers and fans in more than 1,400 schools in Pennsylvania. Elements of this partnership could be seen in print ads, educational flyers, monthly e-blasts, locker room posters, event signage, event commercials and on-site activations.
NEBPI saw positive results with the PIAA partnership and decided to expand the geographic reach of high school athletic partnerships. With funding from the South Dakota Beef Industry Council, NEBPI partnered with the District of Columbia State Athletic Association (DCSAA), which has 51 member high schools and 85,000 students. Additionally, with a Farm Credit Northeast AgEnhancement program grant, NEBPI worked with the New Jersey State Interscholastic Athletic Association (NJSIAA), which has 435 member high schools and 283,650 student-athletes.
By aligning with athletics to share beef’s multiple advantages, the Beef Checkoff is encouraging student-athletes, coaches, fans, nutritionists and more to learn about beef’s role in a healthy, active lifestyle.
“I think beef producers should be excited about these program efforts because they provide a unique opportunity to reach consumers within the Northeast region’s targeted, highly populated metropolitan areas,” Swope said.
To learn more about NEBPI’s efforts to drive demand for beef in the Northeast visit here.
My husband Pat and I own and operate a cow-calf operation and produce diversified row crops near LaMonte, Missouri. However, as much as I enjoy farming, my true passion is education. I was a teacher for 32 years, working in pre-K and elementary classrooms and assisting students as a library media specialist and technology coordinator.
Now, as a member of the Cattlemen’s Beef Board and the Consumer Trust Committee, I’m finding new ways to enjoy “teachable moments” – spontaneous opportunities to answer questions and engage producers and consumers in conversations about the Beef Checkoff –and the programs it funds to drive beef demand. One program that particularly resonates with me as a former educator is managed by the American Farm Bureau Foundation for Agriculture (AFBFA), a contractor to the Beef Checkoff.
AFBFA brings agriculture back into the classroom with its “On The Farm” STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Math) program. This program shares the realities of farm life and food production through a variety of resources along with in-person teacher farm and ranch tours. STEM educators get an annual, immersive professional development experience that combines food and agriculture with science education. Then, they take what they’ve learned back to their students, exponentially broadening the program’s reach.
Why does this program matter? Because far fewer schoolchildren today are exposed to agriculture, they often don’t understand where their food comes from. I used to experience that every fall, when I’d bring corn stalks with ears attached to my classroom for a door display. Many students – even in an agriculture-rich state like Missouri – wanted to know how I “made that corn” because it didn’t look like the corn that was a part of last Sunday’s dinner. I was able to explain why field corn looks different from sweet corn and how beef producers harvest and use it. However, in urban areas, teachers usually don’t have an agricultural background, which is why sharing the farming experience with them is so important.
The twelfth and most recent On The Farm in-person tour took place in June, when 29 teachers and school administrators from across the country representing 70,000 students traveled to Colorado for an event hosted by the Colorado Beef Council. Participants visited with experts from across the cattle industry to better understand how to integrate animal agriculture into their STEM classrooms back home.
Day One included learning about elements of cattle feed. Attendees also began developing their own lesson plans centered around the involvement of STEM in the beef cattle life cycle. On Day Two, attendees toured Colorado State University’s AgNext research facility to learn about methane measurement and how researchers observe and research cannulated cows. In addition to the in-person tours, this program included two pre-tour webinars that led up to the multi-day, in-the-field, immersive experience, one post-tour webinar and a structured professional development community. Previous On The Farm STEM tours have taken place in Portland (OR), Oklahoma City, Los Angeles, Nashville, Minneapolis, Fort Worth, Philadelphia, Syracuse (NY), Kansas City and Boston, providing different agricultural perspectives from around the country.
AFBFA’s efforts go beyond the On The Farm tours. They work with teachers across the country to integrate Checkoff-funded elementary, middle and high school beef curriculums into their lesson plans in multiple ways, like offering free resources, virtual workshops and so much more. By offering these well-rounded, immersive programs, the Beef Checkoff is giving hundreds of educators the knowledge and tools to effectively introduce students to beef production and the care and commitment beef producers dedicate to their herds.
Connecting agriculture with science helps these STEM educators foster a new generation of consumers who are better informed about beef and beef production. That’s incredibly important in today’s world where so much misinformation about agriculture and beef production exists. As a producer and an educator, I want consumers to better understand agriculture’s remarkable impact on us all – and the Beef Checkoff is helping make that happen.
Consumers continue to look for the “antibiotic-free” label when shopping for groceries. 5In fact, according to the most recent International Food Information Council (IFIC) Food & Health Survey, 25 percent of U.S. consumers say they regularly purchase products labeled “raised without antibiotics.” Yet, the same survey shows a significant number of consumers are concerned with animal welfare and environmental sustainability when buying foods. Also indicated in the survey was that protein is the number one nutrient consumers seek. 6
Acknowledging these somewhat conflicting facts, how does the beef industry explain to consumers how responsible antibiotic use positively affects sustainable, safe beef production and ensures the highest standards of animal care? That’s where the Beef Checkoff comes in.
The Beef Checkoff funds multiple programs and initiatives that communicate the responsible use of antibiotics in beef production. They also give beef producers the tools and resources needed to face the ever-changing landscape of responsible antibiotic use. One way the Beef Checkoff accomplishes this is by collaborating with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC.)
The National Institute for Animal Agriculture (NIAA), on behalf of the Beef Checkoff, convenes animal agriculture experts and allies in collaborative settings. Here, they explore, discuss, learn and develop knowledge that fosters interdisciplinary cooperation for the improvement and continuous progress of animal agriculture.
“Collaboration across industries is increasingly important as issues arise, but it’s even more important to work together to prevent issues before they arise,” Cattlemen’s Beef Board Vice Chair Andy Bishop said. “Through collaboration, we can work together to achieve the same goals without overlapping or superseding our efforts.”
The Beef Checkoff engages with CDC professionals by hosting farm tours and educational events. Recently, in partnership with the Kentucky Cattlemen’s Association and Kentucky Pork Producers Association, 12 CDC doctors toured Kentucky ranches to see on-farm practices, animal preventative care and treatment protocols to understand the practical use of antimicrobials in animal agriculture. CDC professionals were able to see the University of Kentucky’s beef, swine, poultry and sheep units. They also toured Branch View Angus in Hustonville, Kentucky and learned how grains are processed at Burkmann Nutrition. The doctors walked away from the interactive event with new perspectives.
In their post-event surveys, attendees said they felt far more aware of the ways animal antibiotics may be used and who is involved in ensuring animals are getting the antibiotics they need—and not the antibiotics they don’t need. “I have learned a great deal about animal production that I feel has improved me as a scientist and a meat-consuming customer,” one attendee said.
Following the tour, 90 percent of attendees said they better understood how farmers, ranchers and veterinarians use antibiotics in their operations, and more than 80 percent said farmers, ranchers and veterinarians are responsible stewards of antibiotics. 7
“Visits like this allow us to not only tell our story but also give us the rare opportunity to meet face to face with medical professionals and scientists,” Bishop said. “The tour gave producers a voice and the chance to network with officials who make rules that will impact our operations. The ‘realness’ that this networking opportunity provides shows these officials that we work hard to provide a safe and nutritious product for consumers. For producers, it shows that the individuals making regulations are real people too, just like us.”
For Ryan Moorhouse, Cattlemen’s Beef Board secretary-treasurer, these types of events give the beef industry a steppingstone to connect with the regulation decision makers.
“By creating more transparency between the CDC officials and animal agriculture production, the voices who work for the government could advocate for us and dispel misinformation about what we do,” he said. “My hope is that we could work together to create regulations instead of having them handed down by folks who have no idea about antibiotic use in animal health management.”
Farmers, ranchers, veterinarians and others in the animal agriculture industry used the CDC tour as an opportunity to tell their stories. Meanwhile, CDC professionals gained valuable access to ask questions and explain their research objectives.
“The benefit of these dialogues is incalculable,” Morgan Young, NIAA’s director of communications and outreach said. “The tour participants were incredibly gracious hosts and were open to telling their stories and engaging in a dialogue with people outside of animal agriculture. The CDC participants were very open to understanding what policies are in place and how we’re all working toward the same one-health goal.”
CDC attendees expressed their appreciation for the gracious tour hosts and the invaluable experience they enjoyed:
NIAA sees the future of responsible antibiotic use as shaped by consistent, effective communication of scientific collaboration, and the Beef Checkoff will support this effort throughout the current 2024 fiscal year. To learn more about the Checkoff’s industry information program and NIAA’s 2024 initiatives, visit, BeefBoard.org/checkoff/beef-checkoff-programs/industry-information/
My husband Craig and I are the fifth generation of the Moss family to farm and feed cattle here in Northwest Iowa. His parents, Arlan and Ruth, continue to work with us on the operation, and our two boys, Merritt (11) and McCoy (9), also pitch in as needed.
Years ago, a life-changing college internship with the Mississippi Beef Council launched me into the beef business. From there, I became even more engrained in the industry as part of the Montana Beef Council. I gained a lifelong passion for the beef industry, and I saw firsthand how important it is for producers to step up and become leaders. My husband currently serves as the Northwest Regional Vice President for the Iowa Cattlemen’s Association, and I became a member of the Cattlemen’s Beef Board – the governing arm of the national Beef Checkoff program – earlier this year. It’s been an eye-opening experience.
You may know that the Beef Checkoff drives demand both here and internationally through various promotional efforts. However, you may not realize the Checkoff is also constantly addressing misinformation about beef. You’ve probably seen and heard a lot of chatter about beef recently, from dietary guidelines and sustainability claims to meat substitutes and animal welfare and everything in between. Of course, much of that chatter is not factual. However, it still has the potential to affect beef purchases at grocery stores or restaurants, which impacts not just my livelihood, but that of the nearly 800,000 other beef producers in the United States today.
During my relatively short time on the CBB, I’ve learned how the Beef Checkoff actively monitors television, online and social media to discover emerging issues that could threaten consumer confidence in beef. By knowing what issues are out there in real time, the Checkoff can fund research that will help the beef industry uncover and share the facts about our product’s sustainability, nutrition, safety and quality.
Those efforts come to life through Checkoff-funded initiatives like middle and high school curriculums about greenhouse gases and cattle, attendance at New York City’s Climate Week conference and immersion events that bring inner city teachers to real farms to learn about how much we producers care for our land and cattle.
There are partnerships with the American Heart Association to educate consumers about beef’s role in a healthy diet, as well as programs providing health care providers with educational content through webinars, in-office visits and at professional conferences. By sharing information through both consumer and professional outreach, the Checkoff can also respond to questions about how beef compares with other proteins, including the plant-based, alternative proteins that have emerged in recent years.
I’m proud to represent Iowa producers on the CBB. I now have the opportunity to share cattle producers’ perspectives from right here in Northwest Iowa with the rest of the country. And I know the Beef Checkoff will continue to focus on funding projects that have a tremendously positive impact on the American beef industry.
Not everyone is aware of how the Checkoff works, and that’s why I encourage my fellow producers with questions to get involved. Go to the meetings – they’re open to all producers. Come chat with me as one of your state’s CBB representatives. It’s by making our voices heard that we get the most value from this program we help fund.