CHECKOFF-FUNDED BEEFMOBILES MAKING FOURTH TOUR ACROSS COUNTRY

COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. (Nov. 1, 2006) – After traveling more than 200,000 miles in three years, the beef checkoff’s “Beefmobiles” are ready to log a few more miles, kicking off the fourth year with a mission to visit more than 250 livestock marketing facilities and other beef-related events. At each location, the Beefmobiles and their “Wranglers” provide information – and solicit input – from cattlemen about the Beef Checkoff Program.

Created to provide information about beef and the checkoff’s $1-per-head assessment to producers and consumers, the Beefmobile program has made more than 450 stops in 43 states since its first stop in January 2004 – mostly at livestock auctions, but also at conventions, meetings, tours, and stock shows. In its first year out, the Beefmobile made 100 stops with one “Wrangler;” last year, two Beefmobiles made 250 stops with three wranglers -- a task the program will repeat in Fiscal 2007.

During the current year, the Beefmobile is 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.

While the Beefmobiles have an impressive presence with their full-coverage images of juicy steaks and hamburgers covering the vans, the heart and soul of the project are the Wranglers.

“The Wranglers have to be knowledgeable of the beef industry, but they also have to be fearless public speakers who remain objective at all times,” said Tracey Orsburn, Beefmobile project manager. “Their job is not to promote the checkoff, but to enhance producer understanding of how checkoff dollars are being used and to help relay producer questions and concerns back to the Beef Board.”

Orsburn should know. She spent two years on the road as a Beefmobile Wrangler, conveying information about what the checkoff does to countless producers across the United States.

“Being a Wrangler is more than a full-time job,” Orsburn said. “In addition to being on-time, visible and available at all of the stops, Wranglers have to write and file reports, collect and enter surveys, confirm scheduling and, of course, spend time on the road getting to each event. Often they are on the road for weeks at a time. It’s a lot of work, but the opportunity to meet producers and see the country while supporting our beef industry is truly rewarding.”

The Beefmobile program is coordinated on behalf of the Cattlemen’s Beef Board by the National Livestock Producers Association (NLPA), one of the Beef Board’s contractors for checkoff-funded programs. The Beefmobile team has its headquarters in Colorado Springs, Colo.

For more information about the Beefmobile, visit www.Beefmobile.com. To schedule a stop, please contact Tracey Orsburn at 1-800-237-7193.

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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 150,000 livestock producers nationwide.

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