STATUS: ONGOING MONITORING
ISSUES LEVEL: VANILLA
THIS DOCUMENT IS: OK for distribution to leadership and boards.

Update on Pending Media Coverage

JANUARY 25, 2018

Following is an update on several pending media stories regarding beef that could hit within the next two weeks. If you have additional information or questions about these stories please contact Daren Williams at dwilliams@beef.org.

1. SITUATION OVERVIEW
New York Times article on antibiotic use in the beef industry
The National Cattlemen’s Beef Association, a contractor to the beef checkoff, was contacted in December by New York Times journalist Danny Hakim as he researched an article on antibiotic use in livestock, specifically cattle. The story is expected to review antibiotic use one year after FDA Guidance 209/213 and the Veterinary Feed Directive went into effect. NCBA facilitated a visit for Hakim to a Texas panhandle feedyard to address how and why antibiotics are used for treatment, prevention, and control of disease and to discuss ongoing research into alternative treatments and better diagnosis of illnesses to reduce antibiotic use.

We have continued to engage with Hakim as he finalized his article, which he submitted to his editors earlier this month. At this point we do not have a publication date but expect to know more within the coming week.

CURRENT STRATEGY & ACTIONS
  • We have identified spokespeople to address the topic and action items pending topics included in the article.
  • We will follow up with further information once the story is published.

2. SITUATION OVERVIEW
Dr. Oz Show segment on ground beef
NCBA, a contractor to the beef checkoff, was contacted by a producer for the Dr. Oz Show who was working on an episode about ground beef and beef safety and looking for an expert spokesperson. We referred them to a well-known meat safety expert but they declined to go with our recommendation and instead, according to the producer, they went with a “representative from Niman Ranch” and the CEO of DeBragga, a New York butcher/online meat purveyor.

The show is to be broken into three, ten-minute segments. According to the producer, the show will start with Dr. Oz interviewing Katy Keiffer, author of What’s the Matter with Meat? Keiffer is expected to raise questions ranging from the safety of imported beef to meat from multiple animals being combined in one burger patty. While Keiffer claims to be a meat eater, she takes issue with what she calls “industrialized meat production.” 

For the second segment, Dr. Oz will ask the representatives from Niman and Debragga to answer questions raised in the first segment. Our understanding is the third segment will be a shopper’s guide to ground beef with someone from America’s Test Kitchen.

The show is scheduled to air Friday, February 9.

CURRENT STRATEGY & ACTIONS
  • We have identified spokespeople to address the topic, should the show's conclusion raise beef safety or quality concerns with consumers.
  • We will continue to actively monitor traditional and social media to determine if further action is necessary.
  • We will leverage materials from Beef. It's What's For Dinner. as necessary.

3. SITUATION OVERVIEW
Red Meat and Cancer

Last week, a study from the American Institute for Cancer Research and the World Cancer Research Fund, authored by Dr. Edward Giovannucci and a team of researchers at Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health in Boston, was published in the journal of JAMA Oncology (January 18).

The study gathered data on more than 121,000 people from two studies — the Health Professionals Follow-up Study and the Nurses' Health Study — in which people were followed for a quarter of a century to track potential influences on their health. The study found associations between eating red meat (such as beef and pork) and processed meat (such as bacon, cold cuts and sausage) and incidence of colorectal cancer. According to the study, every 1.8 ounces a day of processed meat increased risk by as much as 16 percent, while eating more than about 17.5 ounces of red meat a week was labeled a “probable cause” of colorectal cancer.

Current coverage includes:

US News Health These Foods May Up Your Odds for Colon Cancer
Vox Why certain diets may increase your cancer risk
Washington Post Exercise and diet can help lower your risk of colon cancer
Reuters 'Inflammatory' diet linked to higher risk of colon cancer

CURRENT STRATEGY & ACTIONS
  • We have not received any media requests.
  • We will continue to actively monitor traditional and social media to determine if further action is necessary.
*We are actively monitoring for the IARC Monograph following the 2015 classification of red meat as a "possible carcinogen". We expect it to be released at any time.

STAKEHOLDER & STATE PARTNER RECOMMENDATIONS
  • If you receive any media inquiries, or have any questions during convention please contact: 
    • Daren Williams 303-241-2419
    • Maddy Ruble 507-402-8199
    • Hillary Makens 303-850-3383.

NEXT STEPS

We are monitoring these situations and will match the appropriate response actions and recommendations to the level of attention and sentiment these stories receive.
Internal links within this document are funded and maintained by the Beef Checkoff. All other outgoing links are to websites maintained by third parties.
FUNDED BY THE BEEF CHECKOFF
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