Reading Time: 3 minutes It’s time for the beef industry to speak up and explain itself to its detractors and the people who don’t understand it. “I become very frustrated when I see media and activists attacking the global beef industry,” Cameron Bruett, head of corporate affairs and sustainability with JBS USA, said at last month’s Canadian Beef Industry […] Read more
Sustainable beef is ‘an incredible opportunity’
Canada’s beef sector leads the world when it comes to sustainability and needs to tell that story, says Cameron Bruett
Ranchers give thumbs up to sustainability pilot
Reading Time: 2 minutes Producers who participated in McDonald’s “verified sustainable” pilot showed a great deal of enthusiasm for the project and the lessons learned. “It felt like they (McDonald’s) were going to the grassroots where the other competitors were not,” said Les Wall, feedlot operator and owner of KCL Cattle Company near Coaldale. “I felt like the other […] Read more
‘Sustainable’ beef pilot a success, but job isn’t done yet
McDonald’s pilot is complete, but now the Canadian beef industry has to create and implement its own standards
Reading Time: 4 minutes After being the first to source and track “verified sustainable” beef for McDonald’s, the Canadian cattle industry has a new challenge — create its own standards that all of its buyers can use. The wrap-up event drew more than 300 ranchers and industry players to celebrate the accomplishment — a sharp contrast to the quiet, […] Read more
Earls retreats from U.S. beef sourcing
Canadian upscale-casual dining chain Earls Restaurants has pulled back from its recent public commitment to the “Certified Humane Beef” brand. Mo Jessa, president of Vancouver-based Earls, said Wednesday the company will instead begin to “work with local ranchers to build our supply of Alberta beef that meets our criteria” for animal care and treatment. The […] Read more
Public comments sought on definition of ‘sustainable’ beef
Committee seeks indicators which accommodate producers, consumers and the environment
Reading Time: < 1 minute The Canadian Roundtable for Sustainable Beef (CRSB) is seeking the public’s comments on the first draft of its sustainability “indicators” for beef operations. The indicators are part of the verified sustainable beef framework the organization is developing, and reflect what will be measured in terms of sustainability on individual operations. “The CRSB has developed indicators […] Read more
McDonald’s confident it is now serving ‘verified sustainable’ beef
It’s only a small amount at present, but McDonald’s says beef that meets its environmental and other standards is now in the supply chain
Reading Time: 3 minutes McDonald’s says it is now selling ‘verified sustainable’ beef — but is holding off on saying it has fulfilled the pledge it made to consumers two years ago. “We’re confident that we are sourcing verified sustainable beef because we have completed 82 full verifications,” said Jeffrey Fitzpatrick-Stilwell, senior manager of sustainability with McDonald’s Canada. “Because […] Read more
Dennis Laycraft new president of Roundtable for Sustainable Beef
Reading Time: < 1 minute Dennis Laycraft is the new president of the Global Roundtable for Sustainable Beef. Laycraft is executive vice-president of the Canadian Cattlemen’s Association and a spokesperson for the beef cattle industry on trade, product safety, and animal disease issues. The global roundtable was established in 2012 with a wide range of stakeholders, including McDonald’s, JBS, Cargill, […] Read more
The nitty-gritty of becoming a ‘verified sustainable’ beef producer
Alberta Beef Producers chair Greg Bowie, who was verified in May, explains what’s involved
Reading Time: 4 minutes Thinking of becoming a producer of ‘verified sustainable beef,’ but wondering just what it involves? There are 31 indicators (available at vsbpilot.ca) that cow-calf producers must meet to qualify for McDonald’s program — and at first glance, it can all seem overwhelming. But it’s actually not that challenging, says Greg Bowie, a seedstock producer from […] Read more
Alberta producer gives ‘verified beef’ process a thumbs up
Elise Walker says the process of being scored on a host of ‘indicators’ looked intimidating but turned out to be easy and informative
Reading Time: 3 minutes If you’ve completed an environmental farm plan, you’ll feel fairly comfortable being verified as part of McDonald’s sustainable beef pilot project. That’s the take of Elise Walker, a Milk River-area producer who was verified in June — although the process looked overwhelming at first. “There are a lot of questions,” said Walker who, along with […] Read more
Consumers want sustainable beef, but defining that may be murky
CNS Canada –– McDonald’s plans on using sustainable beef by 2016, and intends on sourcing at least part of it from Canadian producers. The fast food giant’s latest step toward sustainability is to define what exactly that means. Defining sustainability is important, according to a beef brand officer, because in some cases it’s something consumers […] Read more
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