Guest blog from the Wisconsin Beef Council 
- What is the Beef Checkoff?
The Beef Checkoff Program is a producer-funded marketing and research program designed to increase domestic and/or international demand for beef. This can be done through promotion, research and new product development, and a variety of other marketing tools. For each bovine animal sold, $1 is collected for the Beef Checkoff Program. Of that $1, half of it is sent to the Cattlemen’s Beef Board in Colorado to execute national marketing efforts and the other half resides in the state of Wisconsin to use for state-wide promotion of beef and beef products. The Beef Checkoff is collected on all beef as well as dairy and veal animals.
- What is my return on investment for the Beef Checkoff?
Your Beef Checkoff returns $11.20 for every $1 invested and can make a big difference in helping build beef demand.
- What is Wisconsin Beef Council doing to increase beef demand?
Wisconsin Beef Council’s mission is to build beef demand that is sustainable for future generations. About 80% of the Wisconsin Beef Council’s work is done through consumer education efforts, 
followed by 20% focusing on producer education and communication. The beef council supports various programs across the state such as Farm to Fork Tours with influencer groups, Beef in the Classroom Grants for Wisconsin high schools, consumer digital advertising, export investments and much more.
Members of the Wisconsin Beef Council Board and other agriculture industry representatives recently traveled to El Salvador and Guatemala to investigate the export opportunities for Wisconsin beef products. Thanks to the export market made in part by the marketing efforts of the checkoff, producers receive an additional $280 of added value on each head sold. Cattlemen’s Beef Board also reports that for every $1 invested in foreign export marketing through their program efforts, results in $48.13 of which is returned to the U.S. beef producer.
By educating today’s consumers (in and outside of the United States) about the benefits of implementing beef in a healthy diet, beef demand increases and so does the beef producer’s bottom dollar.
- What does the Wisconsin Beef Council not do?
The Wisconsin Beef Council is prohibited from promoting a branded product or participating in policy work with Beef Checkoff funds. To ensure this does not happen, several firewalls are implemented and audits are completed on an annual basis.
- How can I help the Wisconsin Beef Council increase beef demand?
The Wisconsin Beef Council encourages beef and dairy producers across the state to participate in various consumer education events throughout the year such as Farm for Fork Tours, conferences and Beef in the Classroom activities. Wisconsin beef producers can also help instill consumer confidence by completing the FREE Beef Quality Assurance Program. By producing a high quality product, consumers will continue to put beef at the center of their plate.
Wisconsin Beef Council shared this guest blog post to celebrate National Beef Month. Visit www.beeftips.com to learn more.
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