On our Nebraska Hereford cattle ranch, back in 1955, we used to measure performance traits related to weight (nobody “liked” to keep records but they were important to our business). A lot of things have changed over the past 45 years—we measure more and we keep more records. Our arsenal now contains a lot of weapons; those weapons, properly targeted and appropriately deployed, can keep us competitive. And, now, in 2001, we are only at the brink of knowing what we need to measure to remain profitable.
After 20 years of declining demand, any fool could see where the beef industry was heading. Now, after seven straight quarters of increased demand for beef—and $80/cwt. fed cattle—things are looking better.
This week, the world’s largest poultry producer (Tyson) offered more than $4 billion to enter the beef business, to buy the world’s largest beef producer (IBP) so they could claim ownership of a substantial quantity of the most popular protein (beef).
There is excitement in the beef industry today—and this places even more importance on what you are doing here this week at the Strategy Workshop for the National Beef Quality Audit—2000. If we don’t take advantage of becoming customer-oriented, we’ll just be one more generation that missed the opportunity. The food business climate is one of impatient consumers and aggressive marketers.
What you will decide here, this week, will identify many of the directions that the beef industry will take during the next few years. We look forward to a good meeting and we anxiously await the decisions of the Strategy Workshop and the findings of the National Beef Quality Audit—2000.