In action at the end of its meeting held last week, the Beef Promotion Operating Committee (BPOC) approved checkoff funding for 12 authorization requests totaling about $38 million for fiscal year 2024, which begins October 1. The committee includes 10 producers from the Cattlemen’s Beef Board (CBB) and 10 producers from the Federation of State Beef Councils.
The funding, which is subject to USDA approval, will be used for programs focused on beef promotion, research, consumer and industry information, foreign marketing and producer communications. Specifically, there will be investments in research projects on beef safety, nutrition, product quality and consumer perceptions about beef. Funds also will be put toward working with primary and secondary school curriculum directors nationwide to get accurate information about the beef industry into classrooms. Other initiatives will include promoting beef’s nutritional value, eating experience and convenience; nutrition influencer outreach; media and public relations efforts; and supply chain engagement.
“We’re consistently impressed with the proposals that our contractors bring forward each year, and choosing which initiatives to fund is a real challenge,” said Oklahoma rancher Jimmy Taylor, CBB and BPOC chair. “Our budget amounts to slightly less each year because of inflation. To put it in perspective, a dollar in 1985 is worth just 35¢ today. That means we simply don’t have the buying power that we had when this program first started.”
For more information on programs being funded for the upcoming fiscal year, click here.