For Immediate Release
Nov. 8, 2004
For information, contact Mark Thomas  (303) 694-0305

 BEEF DEMAND FUELED BY CHECKOFF ACTIVITIES  

            "Beef holds a position in the collective consumer mind that no other food has-and I mean a positive position," said Mark Thomas, executive director of global marketing with the National Cattlemen's Beef Association (NCBA).

            For example, Thomas told cattle feeders attending the 2004 Annual Convention of the Texas Cattle Feeders Association (TCFA) in San Antonio , when consumers describe chicken in terms of an automobile, they invariably say a subcompact.  "If you ask people to describe pork in terms of an automobile, they don't have an answer." 

But ask people to describe beef in terms of an automobile.  "They'll give a big SUV, a Lincoln, a Cadillac.  So beef has an identity that no other food has.  And part of our mission with checkoff dollars is to maintain that position." 

            Thomas told cattle feeders the checkoff is not just maintaining but building consumer demand in several ways.

            "In the nutrition area, we can clearly demonstrate that when people see the nutrition ads, their positive attitudes regarding beef are much higher than those who didn't see the ads," he said.  That's important because consumers have had about 30 years of misinformation from a lot of sources regarding beef in the diet.  "The beef industry is aggressively spending millions to straighten out that 30 years of misinformation."

            Another success story is the "Beef. It's What's For Dinner" marketing campaign.  Thomas told TCFA members that people who see the Beef. It's What's For Dinner ads have a much higher favorability rating for beef.  For instance, 62% of consumers who didn't see the ads think beef is a food they would have a hard time giving up.  For those who saw the ads, the rating jumps to 80%.  "And this one I think is particularly telling.  Responding to the statement 'Beef is expensive but worth it,' 51% who didn't see the ads responded positively; 62% who saw the ads responded positively."

            There is no question, Thomas said, that beef advertising is working.  "It is fueling the passion consumers have for beef." 

            And cattlemen are seeing that passion pay off.  "If you go back to the decade of the '90s, on an annual basis, consumers were spending around $45 billion per year on beef.  In 2004, the projection is $70 billion." 

            The demand curve began to go in cattlemen's direction beginning in 1999.  "That kind of change, I think, is historic," Thomas said.  "From '99 on, the demand curve has been steadily, steadily increasing.  And the beef checkoff, in its work in product development and consumer education, has played a role in that.  That's the good news for cattlemen." 

[Home] [Back] [Printable Form]