CBB Vice Chairman says Beef Checkoff Helping to Drive Strong Beef Demand
September 3, 2026
Despite geopolitical uncertainty and continued challenges throughout agriculture, consumer demand for beef remains strong, and Cattlemen’s Beef Board Vice Chairman and Wisconsin cattle producer Terry Quam says decades of producer investment deserve some of the credit.
Quam discussed the Beef Checkoff while attending the Common Ground Coalition’s Southern Plains Regional Summit in Fort Worth, Texas, pointing to the transformation that has taken place across the beef industry during the program’s roughly four decades.
“You look at over the 40 years of what we did and what we accomplished in a 40-year period of the Beef Checkoff helping build that beef demand,” Quam said.
He credits the cattle producers who established the program with recognizing that the industry needed to take a critical look at its product and better understand what consumers wanted.
“I’ve got to give the founding members of the Checkoff really a lot of credit, because they did what the industry needed to be done—a hard look at ourselves and decide, ‘Hey, we need to improve and we’ve got to get a better product that that consumer wants to buy and demands to buy.’”
Producers Responded to Consumer Demand
Quam said strong beef demand today didn’t happen by accident. Research, promotion and improvements throughout the production chain have helped producers respond to changing consumer expectations.
“A lot of it is the fact that the producers came together with a unified voice saying, ‘We know we’ve got a problem. We’ve got to do better,’” Quam said. “I congratulate every one of the producers out there in the community. They did it. They’ve got a better product out there.”
One of the most significant changes, according to Quam, has been the availability of higher-quality beef.
He pointed to the amount of high-Choice and Prime beef available today as an example of the industry responding to consumers who increasingly value quality, nutrition and a positive eating experience.
Quam said Beef Checkoff-funded research continues to help the industry understand what drives consumers’ purchasing decisions.
“When you look at the Meat Demand Monitor that is funded through the Beef Checkoff, through Kansas State University and one of our contractors, what is one of the things that we learn every month about what consumers want? Taste and tenderness,” Quam said.
Those findings, he said, have helped cattle producers make changes throughout the production system, including improvements in genetics.
“They listen. They learn,” Quam said of producers. “They’re using the genetics in the cattle that we’ve got today. They’re using the ability to figure out what cattle to breed and what to do to give that consumer what they exactly want—taste and tenderness.”
Research Remains a Major Checkoff Priority
Quam also highlighted the importance of research funded through producer Checkoff dollars.
He pointed specifically to research related to nutrition and dietary recommendations as an example of why producers need credible scientific information supporting beef.
“You’ve got to applaud the producers for funding that, because that’s critical,” Quam said. “If we’re not willing to invest in our own product and get credible researchers to do the work to promote our product, improve the dynamics of our product, who else is going to do it?”
For Quam, research is one piece of a broader Checkoff strategy that includes education, promotion and industry information.
Beef Promotion Operating Committee Heads to Denver
Attention now turns to one of the most important meetings of the year for the Beef Checkoff.
The Beef Promotion Operating Committee is scheduled to meet September 2-4 in Denver, Colorado, where members will evaluate funding proposals and determine how available Checkoff dollars should be invested.
Quam said the 20-member committee includes representatives selected through the Cattlemen’s Beef Board and the Federation of State Beef Councils.
The challenge, he said, is that requests for funding exceed the dollars available.
“We have way more demand for the dollar than what we have dollars for,” Quam said.
According to Quam, approximately 13 contractors will come forward with programs for consideration across areas including research, education, promotion and industry information.
“We’re going to have to figure out the best way to value that dollar and put that dollar to work to promote on all segments of the industry,” he said.
Quam described the process as one of the most critical responsibilities Beef Checkoff leaders undertake each year.
‘There’s No Secrets’
Quam also emphasized transparency as the committee prepares to make those funding decisions.
“There’s no secrets,” he said.
Producers can listen to the Beef Promotion Operating Committee meetings online, and Quam said information coming out of the meeting will also be made available to the public.
“Everything that comes out of that meeting will be on our website. Everything,” Quam said.
He also encouraged cattle producers with questions about Checkoff investments to contact Cattlemen’s Beef Board staff, directors or national officers directly.
“Those people are there working for you, and they’ll gladly answer the questions that you have,” he said.
Quam acknowledged that deciding where to invest limited Checkoff resources isn’t easy, particularly because committee members represent a broad cross-section of the cattle industry.
“You have cow-calf, you have stockers, you have feeders,” Quam said. “You have very large producers. You have very, very small producers. Everybody’s got a different opinion how to spend that dollar.”
Those differences can make the process challenging, but Quam said the ultimate goal remains the same: invest producer dollars where they can provide the greatest benefit across the beef industry.
The Beef Promotion Operating Committee meets September 2-4 in Denver, Colorado. More information about the Beef Checkoff and the meeting is available at www.drivingdemandforbeef.com.
Source: Western Ag Network
