Idaho Beef Council outlines marketing programs, checkoff uses and industry concerns to Senate Ag Committee

The Idaho Beef Council told the Idaho Senate Committee on Agriculture on Feb. 11 that it is investing producer checkoff dollars in retail training, food-service promotions, international buyer outreach and research to grow demand for Idaho beef and to build consumer trust.

The presentation, given by TK Kuwahara of the Idaho Beef Council, emphasized that the national $1-per-head beef checkoff is divided so that 50 cents goes to the national Cattlemen’s Beef Board and up to 50 cents remains for state-level programs. "We are a state agency that was created in 1967, and we support all of the Idaho beef producers here in the state," Kuwahara said, describing the council’s mission to expand domestic and global consumer demand for beef while noting legal limits on how checkoff funds may be used.

Kuwahara told the committee the council uses its portion of the checkoff and additional state funds for retail education, food-service promotions, international marketing and producer-facing research. The council funds retailer meat-manager training, pilot programs with a major retailer that the council said returned about $1 million in traceable sales from a $10,000 Idaho investment, and research projects such as work on shelf-life…