Agricultural News
Alisa Harrison says When Consumers Have Options, They Still Choose Beef
Thu, 23 Jan 2020 08:38:34 CST
Alisa Harrison is Vice President for Global Marketing and Issues Management for the National Cattlemen's Beef Association. She was on a panel at the American Farm Bureaus annual convention in Austin, Texas, where they were talking about beyond meat and impossible burgers. Harrison says as far as the beef industry concerned, the key is to make sure consumers understand what these products really are all about.
"We know that the consumer out there is very smart, and when they have the right information, they will make good choices from that standpoint. I think it's important to remember that this is a very small part of the market. What our research shows is that consumers who are trying some of the meat alternatives, it's not taking away from beef consumption. They're still eating the same amount of beef, the same amount of chicken, the same amount of pork. These are just another protein option that is out there today. From a consumer standpoint, they look at all; this is just options for them.
Our research also showed that when we go out and are more negative about some of the plant-based products that are out there, they don't like that. They don't like the beef industry going out, and you know trying to squash innovation or some of these products because they make those choices, themselves, and it's up to them to decide what they want to eat. So when we go out and talk to consumers, we spend a fair amount of time trying to make sure that we're presenting information to them in a way that they want to receive it, and where they want to receive it. Whether it's on Facebook, whether it's on Twitter, Instagram, Pinterest, any of those, that's where we're kind of playing from that same point. When the consumer has the products in front of them, whether it's a plant-based burger, or lentils or tofu, they're looking at it completely different than what we are. So I think it's important for us to keep in mind. It's not an either-or, and it's not a substitution for beef.
You know the number of people who say that they're vegetarian or vegans has been consistent for the last 30 years. I don't anticipate that's going to increase any; this is just another product that's on the marketplace today for consumers."
Click on the LISTEN BAR below to hear the complete interview with Alisa Harrison as she talks With Ron Hays.
The Beef Buzz is a regular feature heard on radio stations around the region on the Radio Oklahoma Network and is a regular audio feature found on this website as well. Click on the LISTEN BAR below for today's show and check out our archives for older Beef Buzz shows covering the gamut of the beef cattle industry today.
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