One of the featured presentations at this week’s Animal Ag Alliance Stakeholders Summit in Kansas City was a panel discussion about sustainability in the beef industry. Speakers on the panel were White City rancher Debbie Lyons-Blythe, Kristen Parman with the Livestock Marketing Association and Justin Nelson with Tyson Foods.
Blythe told the audience public and supply chain conversations about sustainability have been ongoing for a long time. That led to formation of the U.S. Roundtable for Sustainable Beef. As a founding member of the group, she and stakeholders from other segments of the supply chain have provided grassroots input to help define sustainability. Blythe said the simple definition is “Take care of the land, take care of the animals, take care of the people and make money.”
“If you don’t make money, you’re not a sustainable business,” she said.
Parman suggested effectively communicating about beef sustainability requires having a dialogue with the public and addressing misinformation. Nelson said transparency is key.