Ministers Bibeau and Ng Respond to Changes Proposed to “Product of USA ” Labelling Regulations

Canada’s Minister of Agriculture and Agri-Food, the Honourable Marie-Claude Bibeau, and Minister of International Trade, Export Promotion, Small Business and Economic Development, the Honourable Mary Ng, today released the following joint statement in response to the advance notice of changes that will be formally proposed by the United States to the “Product of USA” voluntary labelling regulations for meat, poultry and egg products.

“ e Canada and United States meat and livestock sectors are highly integrated. is collaboration contributes to the growth and resilience of farmers and processors on both sides of the border. It also allows us to ensure a reliable supply of high-quality products.

“Canada remains concerned about any measures that may cause disruptions to the integrated North American livestock supply chains.

“Canada will closely review the proposed amendments to the labelling of meat, poultry and egg products in the U.S. and will participate in the U.S. rule-making process to ensure that these changes conform to the U.S.’ international trade obligations and do not disrupt supply chains.

“Canada will also rmly oppose any proposition from the United States to renew a mandatory country of origin labelling system for pork and beef, a practice which the World Trade Organization allowed Canada to take retaliation measures against the United States.

“Canada will work with the U.S. to ensure that new de nitions and rules allow farmers, processors and consumers in both countries to continue to bene t from e cient, stable and competitive markets.”

Congratulations to Rockcastle County Beef Association on being the lucky winners of this year’s squeeze chute sponsored by Priefert! The squeeze chute winner was drawn at random following this year’s KCA Convention & Ag Industry Trade Show. To be eligible, County Chapters had to retain 50% or more memberships based on the previous year’s ending membership total by January 1st.

If you need anything for membership, please contact Rachel Cain at (859) 278-0899 or rcain@kycattle.org

2022-23 MEMBERSHIP APPLICATION

* MEMBERSHIP YEAR 10/1/22– 9/30/23

*Payments of KCA membership dues are tax deductible for most members as an ordinary and necessary business expense. However, charitable contributions of gifts to KCA are not tax deductible for Federal Income Tax purposes. Due to new IRS regulations, $2.24 of your dues would not be deductible. Approximately $12 of your dues will go towards the monthly publication Cow Country.

PLEASE CHECK THE MEMBERSHIP(S) YOU WOULD LIKE TO JOIN:

KCA MEMBERSHIP ($30/YR) NEW RENEWAL

Membership dues are $30 unless otherwise listed below

KCA COUPLE MEMBERSHIP

To add your spouse, please add $15 to your KCA Membership

KENTUCKY JUNIOR CATTLEMEN’S ASSOCIATION ($10/YR) NEW RENEWAL

I WOULD LIKE ADDITIONAL INFORMATION ON THE YOUNG PRODUCER’S COUNCIL

TOTAL MEMBERSHIP:

$ KCA $ KJCA

TOTAL CONTRIBUTIONS:

$ CATTLEMEN’S FOUNDATION DONATION (voluntary)

TOTAL AMOUNT ENCLOSED:

$ ALL DONATIONS TO KCF ARE TAX DEDUCTIBLE

COUNTY DUES

Dues are $30 except for the counties listed below.

Allen...............................$40

Anderson........................$25

Bourbon.........................$20

Boyle ..............................$35

Bullitt..............................$20

Butler..............................$25

Franklin ..........................$25

Highlands .......................$20

(Boyd, Floyd, Johnson, Lawrence, & Martin)

Hopkins ..........................$35

Laurel.............................$35

Lincoln ...........................$25

Louisville Area ................$20

(Jefferson, & Spencer)

Magoffin .........................$20

Menifee ..........................$25

Mountain........................$25

(Breathitt, Knott, Lee, Leslie, Letcher, Morgan, Owsley, Perry & Wolfe)

Oldham ..........................$35

Taylor..............................$20

Twin Lakes ......................$20

Warren ...........................$40

Wayne ............................$25

Whitley ...........................$25

Woodford......................$25

Kylie Trail Director of Brand Management

BEEF ITS WHAT'S FOR DINNER 300 Tomahawks, It’s What’s for Winners at Daytona!

In February, I had the opportunity to take Checko Committee Members: Kent Robertson, Don Pemberton, and Allison Nissley to spend the weekend volunteering at Daytona International Speedway for the Beef. It’s What’s For Dinner 300 X nity Race!

is consumer outreach promotion is led by the National Cattlemen's Beef Association, a contractor of the Beef Checko , with immense support from multiple participating State Beef Councils. Austin Hill was the back-to-back winner of the 2023 Beef. It’s What’s For Dinner.® 300, the 42nd annual NASCAR X nity Series season opening race, one day before the iconic DAYTONA 500. For the second year in a row, Austin Hill drove into victory lane where he was greeted by a buckle and a Tomahawk Steak to close out a week that showcased all things beef and agriculture to race fans young and old.

Along with the race sponsorship, we also had a booth in the fan experience zone that was a huge hit. ere were long lines all day to spin the beef cuts wheel for a prize, sample brisket sliders, and learn to rope a calf! ese were great ways to get fans excited about trying new cuts of beef and interacting with farmers and ranchers to increase their trust in our product. Another piece to the activation was highlighting fans on the in eld that were grilling beef by handing out signs that read “Grilling Beef Here”, that were proudly displayed at nearly every camp sight.

For race fans not able to join the tailgate in person, a satellite media tour took the tailgate to them. Just two days before the race, award winning chef Ryan Clark, Tucson’s Iron Chef for three consecutive years and Executive Chef for the AAA 4-Diamond and Forbes 4-Star Hotel Casino Del Sol, was live from the track for interviews with TV and radio stations across the country. Chef Clark shared two of his favorite race day recipes – a Beef, Beer & Cheese Dip and BBQ Beef Sliders – both perfect for tailgating, or homegating.

Finally, the Beef. It’s What’s For Dinner. brand was also showcased nationwide through various advertising e orts before and during the race. In addition to signage on the racetrack, funding from several State Beef Councils allowed for commercials showcasing beef to a national audience on FS1 during the race. Ads were also featured on various digital platforms and billboards could be seen in the Daytona International Airport and along the highway approaching the speedway.

A er attending the event in person each one of the committee members that attended agreed that this national promotion was time and money well spent and was e ective in increasing the demand for beef!

Owensboro Burger Week

is year was the third year now that KBC has been the presenting sponsor of the Owensboro Burger Week. is event continues to grow and exceed all expectations, the excitement and participation around this event is electric. is year 38 restaurants participated in the 9-day promotion where their chefs cra ed a signature burger to be sold for $7 dollars. It was such a hit many locations had trouble keeping up with the demand for these specialty burgers.

During my time in Owensboro, we had the opportunity to get area cattlemen immersed into this checko -funded promotion by hosting a Cattlemen’s Pop-up Event held at e Miller House. is was a chance for cattlemen to catch up with what their Beef Checko is doing in their own county to increase beef demand while enjoying a signature burger!

THE RESULTS ARE IN!

The Owensboro Burger Week promotion produced record sales for Daviess County restaurants. There were over 34,549 specialty burgers sold for $7 a piece at 38 participating restaurants. Over $241,843 was spent in nine days on featured burger sales alone. That's a lot of beef consumed!

As we transition into Spring time, most people seem to begin looking forward to warmer weather, longer days, and ring up their grills. I look forward to those things for sure, but there are also a lot of opportunities to get more involved with our educators across the state. Some of those ways have been through eld trips, agriculture day events, however one of the ways that has been bene cial is through our beef demonstrations.

What I have been able to nd is that the majority of our high school students are somewhat familiar with the kitchen, however the idea of correctly purchasing and cooking beef is intimidating to them. e opportunity to make educated consumers who will continue to consume and purchase beef starts while they are in high school. Also, most of the students who attend these events do not come from cattle farming backgrounds. In my opinion, we have an obligation as members of the beef industry to help students make connections between the beef farmer story, all the way to beef consumption tips and tricks. When presenting during these demonstrations, I really work to engage with students and answer the questions that they have regarding various cuts of beef, cooking methods, and beef advocacy. Reaching almost 300 students, Morgynne Lunsford and I have visited schools all across the state including Ms.Hunter-Anne Julian’s Food Science and Animal Science classes at South Warren High School, Mrs. Darilyn Hamilton and Mrs. Kaitlin Eades Animal Science and Principles of Agriculture classes at Spencer County High School, and Mr. Conner Richardson’s Principles of Agriculture classes at Woodford County High School. If you are interested in learning more about how to have a beef demonstration in your classroom, contact Bradon at bburks@ kycattle.org.

We would also like to o cially announce the Kentucky Beef Council’s Advocacy Summit and Youth Advocacy Summit for this year as well. During these events, attendees will be able to take a deeper dive of how to share their beef message with both producers and consumers. With the help of NCBA’s Director of Grassroots Advocacy and Spokesperson Development, Mr. Chandler Mulvaney, we know that these events will be bene cial for attendees on all age levels and knowledge levels. Our Adult Summit will be April 28th and our Youth Summit will be on April 29th, both at e YARDS Classroom at Blue Grass Stockyards in Lexington, KY. For more information or to register for either event, visit www.kybeef.com.

University of Kentucky Extension and Kentucky Beef Network Offer Free

BQCA Certi cations in April and September

e Kentucky Beef Network and University of Kentucky Extension are pleased to announce that they will be o ering free Beef Quality and Care Assurance (BQCA) certi cations in April 2023 and September 2023.

e Kentucky BQCA program takes national BQA practices one step further to provide a holistic program for Kentucky producers, by adding cattle handling and animal care component to the training modules. Educational modules provide the best management practices for handling cattle and providing for their well-being, in addition to training on the core principles of BQA.

e cost of BQCA enrollment is $5 for in person training through their local county extension o ce and $10 for online training, however from April 1- 30, 2023 and September 1-30, 2023 the Kentucky Beef Network and University of Kentucky Extension will be sponsoring the enrollment costs, making it free for producers.

Producers interested in taking advantage of this opportunity can visit www.kybeefnetwork.com to access the online training platform or contact their county extension o ce for training opportunities.

“We are very excited for this partnership for our Kentucky cattlemen to continue to tell their story to consumers through sound management practices,” says Kevin Laurent University of Kentucky CoBQCA Coordinator.

e Kentucky Beef Network and University of Kentucky merged their Cattle Handling and Care Program with the National BQA program to create a new program, aptly named the Beef Quality and Care Assurance (BQCA) program. is program was implemented to raise awareness of practices that ensure the proper handling and welfare of cattle while keeping farmers safe and continuing to supply healthy beef to consumers. In turn, this program enables beef and dairy producers to enhance their product, maximize marketability and strengthen consumer con dence.