Agriculture:
Telling the Other Side of the Story
April 2011
Our CHALLENGE
Lifecycle of U.S. Beef
Farming is Mysterious
• Declining number of farmers and
ranchers in the United States.
• Consumers increasingly removed
from farming and ranching roots.
• Decreased consumer familiarity
with agriculture industries.
The Fuzzy Spot
Advocacy Group
Revenue
Consumers Union
$252 mil
HSUS
$125 mil
Sierra Club
$82 mil
Greenpeace
$40 mil
“We have the potential to be one of the
PETA forces in politics.”
$33 mil
most powerful
CSPI
– Wayne Pacelle $19 mil
Union of Concerned Scientists
$32 mil
PCRM
$7 mil
Farm Sanctuary
$5 mil
Top-Rated NGOs
1.
74%
American Red Cross
2.
72%
Better Business Bureau
3.
70%
Habitat for Humanity
4.
70%
American Cancer Society
5.
69%
Salvation Army
6.
69%
HSUS
7.
68%
Big Brothers/Big Sisters
8.
66%
American Heart Association
9.
66%
St. Jude’s Children’s Hospital
“Our goal is the abolition of all
animal agriculture.”
–John Goodwin, HSUS Coordinator
“It would be better if human beings
would stop killing, eating, enslaving,
and exploiting animals.”
– Whole Foods CEO John Mackey
“Organic agriculture is the only
sustainable solution for the
future…that is our goal.”
– Greenpeace director Peter Melchett
Challenging Perceptions
“They’re just doing it to
make more money”
“What goes into the
cows, goes into me”
“I feel conflicted
about beef”
“It’s unnatural”
“[Beef is] A relatively doomed diet,
because of environment & health
implications”
Challenging Perceptions
“Factory Farming”?
61% YES
Up from 49%
in 2008
48% associate
with beef cattle
58% believe beef comes
from “factory farms”
33% concerned about safety
of “factory farmed” beef
The OPPORTUNITY
Consumers Want to
Know Farmers & Ranchers
Interest in knowing where beef comes from
74%
27%
47%
20%
Very interested
Somewhat interested
Not very interested
Not at all interested
6%
Knowledge = Favorability
Percent favorable based on knowledge
25%
88%
44%
33%
63%
9%
42%
Know very
well
Know
somewhat
33%
45%
26%
21%
26%
Know just a
little
Know almost
nothing
Never heard
of
Very FAV
Mainly FAV
10 Most Trusted Ways a Company
Can Communicate with Me
45% Real stories about
real people
44%
Word-of-mouth from family,
friends, co-workers
38%
TV News, programs and
their Web sites
36%
Newspaper & magazine
articles & Web sites
36%
Company Web sites,
reports, package info
35%
My own research on
the Internet
30%
NGOs, govt.,
universities
30%
Orgs/causes
supported
29%
Radio programs
and news
Source: GolinHarris’ 2005-2009 “Corporate
Citizenship and American Business”
U.S. EFFORTS
The Beef Checkoff Program
• Established within 1985 Farm Bill, became
mandatory in 1988
• $1/head assessed every time a beef animal
is sold
• Cattlemen’s Beef Board administers
program, subject to U.S. Department of
Agriculture approval
Importers
Pay $1/head or equivalent
Dairy, Beef, Veal Producers
Pay $1/head
State
Beef
Councils
50¢
State
Programs
Cattlemen’s
Beef Board
50¢
10
Federation
State Beef
Councils
10
Promoting
Researching
Educating
Safeguarding
Operating
Committee
National
Programs
The Beef Checkoff Program
• Promotion
• Research
• Consumer Information
• Industry Information
• Foreign Marketing
• Producer Communications
Beef Issues Management
1) Protect consumer confidence, and
therefore, the marketing climate for
beef, by leading unified and effective
industry responses to critical issues;
and
2) Pave the way for demand-driving
programs by strengthening the
reputation of the beef industry and its
farming and ranching members.
SUCCESSES
www.YouTube.com/
BeefPastureToPlate
Student Documentaries
• Less than 2% of U.S.
population raises food.
• We’re using fewer
natural resources to
raise beef today.
• Our efforts are helping
supply a growing
population with great
tasting, nutritious beef.
Denver: JBS donated
16,000 lbs of beef to
area food banks
Missouri: Donated
nearly 15,000 lbs of
food to state food banks
“Agvocate” Training
• Take advantage of
cattlemen’s credibility
• Give industry training,
tools and confidence to
speak up and speak out
• Put a face on modern
beef production
Earning Your MBA
MBA Gains Notoriety
2,040 MBA
graduates in 47
states since
April 2009.
Agriculture’s CHARGE
Be an [Agriculture] Activist
Be an [Agriculture] Activist
• Show your passion
• Don’t let misinformation
go unchecked
• Stay on top of current events,
be informed
• Understand the “other side”
Make Yourself Heard
• Presentations
• Online
• Media interviews • Everyday
conversations
Make it Compelling
• Keep it simple
• Make it easy for others to
understand and remember
• Tell YOUR story
Speak Out Early and OFTEN
Them
Us
QUESTIONS?
THANK YOU!