Beef Quality Assurance
by Neil Cates, Livestock Production Agent
The United States is home to approximately 313 million people. Of the 313 million people, approximately 800,000 people are beef producers. 800,000 seems like a lot right? Not really. That represents .25% of the nations’ population. You might be wondering where I am going with this. This .25% put beef on the table of the 313 million people. People that are greatly removed from agriculture, who rely and trust the .25% to provide them with a safe, quality food supply.
Last winter, Kansas State University conducted a survey of 1,950 U.S. respondents focusing on consumers’ decisions when purchasing ground beef, beef steak, chicken breast and milk and ranked the importance of characteristics such as safety, freshness, taste, etc. The results showed that safety and freshness were at the top of the list of the consumers’ selection list when selecting animal food products at stores. For producers, this means we have to do everything possible to provide consumers a safe and high quality product. One way to do this is through Beef Quality Assurance (BQA) training.
Beef Quality Assurance (BQA) is a program developed to ensure that beef and dairy cattle are managed in a way that will result in safe and wholesome beef and milk products for the consumer. BQA equips producers with best management practices for all sections of the industry. They offer a variety of different modules so cow/calf producers can focus on cow/calf practices and feedlot personnel can focus on feedlot oriented practices. The majority of producers in our area would want to take Cow/Calf package. According to the website, The Cow/Calf package covers information specific to the needs of today’s cow/calf producers including up-to-date information on weaning and preconditioning of calves, handling and culling, herd health plans, calf management, and humane euthanasia. Others in the district might find the Stocker/Backgrounder package or the Feedlot Processor package more useful. Each package consists of a series of videos, with a test at the end of each video. Traditionally, each package is $25 dollars. Currently, Boehringer Ingelheim Vetmedica, Inc. (BIVI), is sponsoring the training for all producers who enroll from September 1st, through October 31st. This is an excellent opportunity to participate. This means it is free for anyone who wants to complete the training. To enroll in the training, visit www.BIVI-BQA.com. This will take you straight to the web site and allow you to begin completion of the modules. The free access code is provided on this website. Your BQA certification is good for 3 years, before you have to renew it. BQA training allows all sectors of the industry to become more responsible for the production of a safe food product through proper animal care, handling, and management practices. By following guidelines such as these, we give consumers peace of mind in their purchases and consumption of beef. Without the trust of the millions of consumers, the beef industry would be out of business. For more information on BQA training or for help registering for the modules, please contact myself, Neil Cates, at 785-738-3597 or by email at ncates@ksu.edu.
The United States is home to approximately 313 million people. Of the 313 million people, approximately 800,000 people are beef producers. 800,000 seems like a lot right? Not really. That represents .25% of the nations’ population. You might be wondering where I am going with this. This .25% put beef on the table of the 313 million people. People that are greatly removed from agriculture, who rely and trust the .25% to provide them with a safe, quality food supply.
Last winter, Kansas State University conducted a survey of 1,950 U.S. respondents focusing on consumers’ decisions when purchasing ground beef, beef steak, chicken breast and milk and ranked the importance of characteristics such as safety, freshness, taste, etc. The results showed that safety and freshness were at the top of the list of the consumers’ selection list when selecting animal food products at stores. For producers, this means we have to do everything possible to provide consumers a safe and high quality product. One way to do this is through Beef Quality Assurance (BQA) training.
Beef Quality Assurance (BQA) is a program developed to ensure that beef and dairy cattle are managed in a way that will result in safe and wholesome beef and milk products for the consumer. BQA equips producers with best management practices for all sections of the industry. They offer a variety of different modules so cow/calf producers can focus on cow/calf practices and feedlot personnel can focus on feedlot oriented practices. The majority of producers in our area would want to take Cow/Calf package. According to the website, The Cow/Calf package covers information specific to the needs of today’s cow/calf producers including up-to-date information on weaning and preconditioning of calves, handling and culling, herd health plans, calf management, and humane euthanasia. Others in the district might find the Stocker/Backgrounder package or the Feedlot Processor package more useful. Each package consists of a series of videos, with a test at the end of each video. Traditionally, each package is $25 dollars. Currently, Boehringer Ingelheim Vetmedica, Inc. (BIVI), is sponsoring the training for all producers who enroll from September 1st, through October 31st. This is an excellent opportunity to participate. This means it is free for anyone who wants to complete the training. To enroll in the training, visit www.BIVI-BQA.com. This will take you straight to the web site and allow you to begin completion of the modules. The free access code is provided on this website. Your BQA certification is good for 3 years, before you have to renew it. BQA training allows all sectors of the industry to become more responsible for the production of a safe food product through proper animal care, handling, and management practices. By following guidelines such as these, we give consumers peace of mind in their purchases and consumption of beef. Without the trust of the millions of consumers, the beef industry would be out of business. For more information on BQA training or for help registering for the modules, please contact myself, Neil Cates, at 785-738-3597 or by email at ncates@ksu.edu.
