Nebraska Corn-Fed Beef, Inc., is adapting to the current business atmosphere of the cattle industry and is making changes to the program that has served Nebraska cattlemen and women for 10 years. The NCFB mission was to provide added value for Nebraska producers who participated in the Program and to provide a branded product to consumers, guaranteeing them a pleasant dining experience. Mission accomplished!

NCFB was one of the first organizations to stress the importance of Beef Quality Assurance, source verification and conformance to strict feeding, production and processing regimes. We grew over the years to a five-person staff that reviewed and verified the production, processing and marketing practices necessary to develop a reputed branded-beef program. NCFB wrote the book on source verification procedures and record keeping. NCFB source verification and BQA requirements were the benchmark for many programs to follow.

Competing branded programs, the animal ID mandate and the requirements for export markets have opened the door for businesses developed with the express purpose of third-party source, age and process verification. These programs operate under the umbrella of the USDA and provide many of the services associated with NCFB. In the interest of efficiency and economy, the NCFB Board of Directors has voted to return the Nebraska Corn-Fed Beef™ label to Nebraska Cattlemen.

I have long believed that the NCFB program’s future success will be in the continued development of the NCFB branded label. This trademarked label has tremendous potential value and is NCFB’s most important asset. Return of this label to NC creates greater efficiency of operations by using USDA-approved source- and process-verified companies to verify and certify the production steps necessary to produce the product eligible for the NCFB label. This allows available resources to be concentrated on promotion of the NCFB brand.

All current and past participants of the NCFB program should look at the many ID, source and age verification companies now in existence and choose the one that best fits their operation. These producers should also follow the evolution of the NCFB label through Nebraska Cattlemen, and participate in that evolution.

It has been my privilege to have close association with this organization since inception and to serve NCFB as executive director for the past four years, working with the finest people in the world, cattle people.    Logan McClelland is the former executive director of the Nebraska Corn-Fed Beef program.

NC Members – Voice Your NCFB Opinion

By Bonnie Christensen

Born and raised on a Nebraska farm and involved for most of my life in some form of this Nebraska beef industry, I know how important Nebraska farmers, ranchers and feeders are to the rest of this nation’s food supply. The rest of the nation views us as honest, hard-working, family-oriented, down-to-earth people. Because no one can produce a more succulent t-bone, Nebraska cattle producers have great possibilities staring us in the face. We just haven’t taken advantage of the marketing possibilities … yet. This is why NCFB has only touched the brink of its capability.

As past NCFB president, I have become more aware of how marketing, both domestically and internationally, can change quickly, and how critical it is to be involved through conversations with packers and retailers. We all know that in the cattle business there’s a very good possibility that after a long period of profits, there probably will be a few losses. This makes me believe that we need to take advantage of every possible added value available.

With the total support of the NC membership (not only a select few) the new NCFB will be able to improve your bottom line by taking advantage of something you already have. Most of you follow BQA requirements, you are all Nebraska cattle producers and have a unique pride in the success of your own cattle operation and the Nebraska beef industry. Nebraska Cattlemen’s development of the NCFB brand will be critical to this program’s success. The supply of cattle is already there, it just needs to be identified.

Those who built this program had a vision to bring added value to Nebraska Corn-Fed Beef. They accomplished this by developing the brand. Let’s continue this process and take advantage of being a part of a program that proves there is nothing that satisfies like Nebraska Corn-Fed Beef.

I challenge you to be a part of this process by voicing your opinion about the direction of this program to the NC executive board as it prepares for a discussion at the NC Annual Convention, November 28-30 in Lincoln. The bottom line is that the NCFB label is available to all Nebraska Cattleman members – take advantage!    Bonnie Christensen is the past president of the Nebraska Corn-Fed Beef program.