BEEFMOBILE ROLLS OUT FOR
MILESTONE FIFTH YEAR

COLORADO SPRINGS, CO (Jan. 10, 2008) – The Beefmobiles, vans emblazoned with visions of juicy steaks and burgers, embark on a tour of the United States this January with the mission of delivering information to beef and dairy producers about how their beef checkoff dollars are being put to work.

Created to provide information about beef and the checkoff’s $1-per-head assessment to producers and consumers, the Beefmobile program has made almost 600 stops since its first stop in January 2004 . The Beefmobile Project was funded at $295,000 for 2008, the fifth year for the project. The two Beefmobiles and their “Wranglers” will make 200 stops to include livestock auction markets, country music festivals, and rodeos across the country. At each location, the Beefmobiles and their Wranglers provide information – and solicit input – from cattlemen about the Beef Checkoff Program.

New additions to the project this year include a Checkoff trivia wheel, Proud Beef Producer campaign, “talking” boxes featuring beef checkoff information, and heat-and-serve beef samples. The Beefmobile will start 2008 by making stops in Louisiana, Alabama, the National Western Stock Show, and South Dakota in January.

In 2007 the Beefmobile was funded with a total of $350,000 in checkoff revenue – $280,000 from the Cattlemen’s Beef Board and $70,000 from the Federation of State Beef Councils. The Federation added another $15,000 to conduct 10 stops at consumer events, where requested by state beef councils. This year the Beefmobile completed 234 producer events and 12 consumer stops in 32 states.

“The highlight of this project continues to be learning how many dedicated people there are in the beef industry and having a chance to work with them as well as visiting with beef producers about the beef checkoff on a day-to-day basis,” Orsburn said. “This program helps address the misinformation out in the country in regard to the true purpose of the checkoff and the role it plays in the promotion and research that would be missing without it.”

The Beefmobile program is coordinated on behalf of the Cattlemen’s Beef Board by the National Livestock Producers Association (NLPA), which is one of the Beef Board’s contractors for beef checkoff-funded programs. For more information about the Beefmobile visit www.Beefmobile.com.

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The Beef Checkoff was established as part of the 1985 Farm Bill. The Checkoff assesses $1 per head on the sale of live domestic and imported cattle, in addition to a comparable assessment on imported beef and beef products. States retain up to 50 cents on the dollar and forward the other 50 cents per head to the Cattlemen’s Beef Promotion and Research Board, which administers the national Checkoff program, subject to USDA approval. Checkoff revenues may be used for promotion, education and research programs to improve the marketing climate for beef.
The National Livestock Producers Association, founded in 1921, is an organization of livestock marketing cooperatives and credit corporations representing more than 200,000 livestock producers nationwide.

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© 2008 Cattlemen's Beef Board