This story isn’t just for dairy producers in Wisconsin, it’s a good reminder for all dairy producers across the country. Don’t forget that you also play a role in the beef industry too.
Brownfield’s Bob Meyer spoke with Nancy Thomas of the Wisconsin Beef Council during the Professional Dairy Producers of Wisconsin Meeting in Madison. Thomas says the dairy industry plays a large role in the beef market.
“A lot of our new beef products that are becoming new on the market are coming from dairy animals,” said Thomas. “In the state of Wisconsin, about 80% of the Checkoff dollars come from the dairy animal.”
This means that a dollar is taken off of every dairy cow and 50 cents is saved and stays in the state of Wisconsin and is used for the Wisconsin Beef Council. The other 50 cents is used by the National Cattlemen’s Beef Board. These programs use their money for promotions, education, and research.
Both the Wisconsin Beef Council and the National Cattlemen’s Beef Board place a tremendous amount of research for new products and for safety. “Safety is a very key issue for producers,” Thomas says. “The research projects that go on insure that our product is safe and we can’t emphasize enough that our product is a safe product that is made for our consumers.”