10 NATIONAL CATTLEMEN
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www.BeefUSA.org
F E D E R A T I O N
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STATE BEEF COUNCILS
Building beef demand by inspiring, unifying and supporting an effective state/national checkoff partnership.
Bloggers Increase Knowledge of, Interest in, Beef Through State Beef Council Pasture to Plate Program A recent “#BLOGMEETSBEEF” program highlighting the Pasture to Plate Experience, sponsored by four state beef councils and the Beef Checkoff Program, has helped increase knowledge of beef and beef production among 14 key food bloggers. The event was held April 26-27 in Columbus, Ohio, and funded by the Kentucky, Michigan, Ohio and Wisconsin Beef Councils. It was also supported by the family-owned Meijer supermarket chain, which carries only Certified Angus Beef. The bloggers invited to the event came from across the four states and are followed on their blogs by consumers throughout the United States. They represent a wide range of cooking and family interests, and regularly share knowledge and recipes with other consumers with an appreciation for food, reaching more than 984,000 people on multiple social platforms, including Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.
The event began with a tour of the Claylick Run Farm, an Angus seedstock and grain operation located in Licking County, Ohio. A presentation from a veterinarian provided key points about necessary animal health aspects of beef production, and was followed by dinner at an upscale casual steakhouse. The following day, the bloggers learned about Meijer meat operations, and were treated to presentations on cutting and cooking beef. They received tips on food photography, and put their own culinary skills to the test in a “Battle of the Beef ” Cookoff and Photo Shoot. “This was a tremendous opportunity to reach out to food enthusiasts who reach thousands of consumers on a daily basis,” said Angie Horkan, director of marketing for the Wisconsin Beef Council. “They came away with a huge appreciation for what it takes to bring beef to America’s dinner tables.” In fact, pre- and post-event surveys
showed the experience had a tremendous influence on how participants view the beef industry, and how they will use their new information in the future. All bloggers said after the event that they believed the positives either strongly (93 percent) or somewhat (7 percent) outweigh the negatives of beef. Furthermore, all said the experience prepared them to communicate simple, healthy ways of incorporating beef either extremely (79 percent) or very (21 percent) well. “While every consumer would benefit from directly experiencing the beef industry, that isn’t feasible,” according to Elizabeth Harsh, executive director of the Ohio Beef Council. “The next best option is to give those who interact with consumers that opportunity, and that’s what we did here.” This type of partnership between state beef councils helps extend the beef checkoff, according to Alison Smith, who coordinates foodservice and retail programs
for the Kentucky Beef Council. “By working together, we can build on the success of the national program and on our individual state programs,” she said. Cindy Hulings of the Michigan Beef Industry Commission agrees. “The Federation of State Beef Councils helps represent state interests at the national level, but these regional efforts give us a chance to work together directly on projects that interest our individual state boards,” said Hulings, MBIC director of promotions and consumer marketing. The “BLOGMEETSBEEF Pasture to Plate Experience is also one way state beef councils and the Beef Checkoff Program are addressing the beef industry’s Long Range Plan, which calls for the industry to grow consumer trust in beef and beef production by increasing opportunities for food industry influencers to get first-hand experiences with beef producers and beef production practices.
Pennsylvania, Arizona Connect with Dietitians State beef councils across the country continue to conduct farm to fork tours to educate health professionals and other thought leaders about beef and how it is raised. Some of these events receive support from the Federation Initiative Fund. For example, as part of this spring’s Pennsylvania Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics (PAND) annual meeting, the Pennsylvania Beef Council facilitated a one-day farm tour for 15 registered dietitians, who got an up-close look at the Pennsylvania beef industry. The project helped PBC connect Pennsylvania’s leading health influencers with how beef is produced across the state. The project included PBC’s participation in a booth at the PAND event, where 88 percent of those polled agreed the positives of beef strongly or somewhat outweigh the negatives. Two day-long tours conducted last fall and this spring by the Arizona Beef Council provided industry transparency to dozens of current and future dietitians seeking more information on beef and beef production. The tours included presentations by and interaction with numerous cattle feed nutritionists, feed yard managers, ranch owners and national checkoff program staff. A survey after the spring event found that 94 percent said they learned what they hoped to about raising beef during their experience – and 100 percent said they learned what they hoped to about the nutrition of beef.
State Councils Join Forces with National Beef Checkoff Program to Increase Online Advertising Seven state and regional beef promoting organizations have joined forces with the national Beef Checkoff Program in a summer campaign targeting millennial consumers in five high population states. State beef councils in Illinois, Pennsylvania, South Dakota, Nebraska, Wyoming and Oklahoma, along with the Northeast Beef Promotion Initiative, are funding extended promotion of the online checkoff-funded flagship website BeefItsWhatsForDinner.com, along with the brand’s online videos, into
California, Florida, New York, Illinois and Pennsylvania. The Top 5 State Media Campaign started in mid-May and will run through Aug. 31, 2016. Collectively, the five states targeted account for more than 100 million consumers, or about onethird of the total U.S. population. The campaign utilizes internet search advertising on Google and YouTube video advertising to hit the consumer at the point of inspiration, encouraging beef interest and purchases. While the national campaign focuses
on millennials throughout the United States, this campaign enhances checkofffunded efforts in top U.S. consumer markets. “This effort leverages our current national checkoff media buy and extends it more fully into the high population geographies that arguably need it the most,” according to Martin Roth, executive director, creative and digital media for the National Cattlemen’s Beef Association, a contractor to the Beef Checkoff Program. “Our goal is to provide consumers with inspiring beef
meal ideas and the tools, tips and recipes they need to act upon their passion for beef.” This goal is accomplished through a two-pronged media approach. First, Google search advertising helps drive thousands of consumers to the BeefItsWhatsForDinner.com website for checkoff-funded recipes, beef cooking techniques and beef cut information. The campaign also leverages advertising on the popular YouTube consumer video site to promote checkoff-funded Continued on page 14