(KMAland) — One silver lining in this pandemic-infused time is the rapid advancement of communications technology, allowing us to talk to more people via Zoom and other choices.
Greg Hanes, CEO of the Cattlemen’s Beef Promotion and Research Board, says that technology has helped beef producers reach more consumers.
“All the contractors we work with and the programs that we have on the checkoff have really done a great job of adapting and evolving to be able to leverage the situation in a positive way. There’s been a huge shift as you know from dining out to eating at home and shopping at retail. Face to face contact has been limited, and so the checkoff has really been able to leverage that and utilizing these new technologies like Zoom or online meetings and social media to reach out to the target audiences, whether that’s consumers or educators or chefs or whoever, to keep beef front and foremost in their mind.”
During the pandemic, Hanes says retail sales of meat proteins have increased, and beef has increased the most.
“I think this really shows the positive impact of the checkoff over years because it takes time to build that consumer demand and build that loyalty with the consumers. So these, these programs have been going for years and I think now we’re really seeing dividends in this case where beef is becoming the protein of choice among the consumers.”
Greg Hanes is CEO of the Cattlemen’s Beef Board.
