Page 20 - WCA September Ketch Pen 2020

PNW Beef Promotion in Japan
By: Patti Brumbach
key Beef Checkoff export strategy for the Washington Japanese meat purveyors come to visit and observe the State Beef Commission. The initiative is a collaboration entire beef production process from ranch to packing between the Beef Checkoff programs in Oregon, Idaho, plant. They also sometimes tour innovative butcher and Washington to increase the sale of beef from the shops, retail stores and restaurants that feature beef northwest in Japan. Resources are used to conduct from the northwest.
retail and foodservice promotions and sponsor trade
teams visiting the northwest each year. The $75,000 in- The Beef Commission has funded the Pacific North-
Trade team visits to the northwest are also part The Pacific Northwest Beef Promotion Initiative is a of the Pacific Northwest Beef Promotion Initiative.
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vested by the beef councils is leveraged with $157,000 from the United States Meat Export Federation and over $264,000 from retail and foodservice partners in Japan making the entire program a $500,000 invest- ment. The program generated more than 3.6 million pounds of incremental beef sales last year alone.
Trade agreements reached between the US and Japan last year provided tariff relief that leveled the playing field for US beef in Japan, a country that has long been a primary export market for our high-qual- ity protein. As a result, the level playing field allowed us to promote a wider range of products with loyal customers and capitalize on the growth opportunities as per capita beef consumption in Japan continues to climb.
Retail point-of-sale advertising, product sampling and beef fairs were all part of the promotional mix at several grocery chains in Japan. Newspaper feature ads focused on products that are undervalued in the US such as chuck eye roll, short plate, and tongue. The promotions at the Aeon Group alone, the largest retail supermarket chain in Japan, resulted in a 60% increase in beef sales over the previous year.
west Beef Promotion Initiative to increase demand for beef from our state since 2013. Japan is the leading country for US exports in terms of value and volume. Exports are critical to the bottom line of beef farmers and ranchers adding over $300 per head from Janu- ary to June this year. Our location on the Pacific Rim makes Japan a perfect country to build demand and value for beef produced right here in the northwest.
For more information about your Beef Checkoff investment call us at 206.444.2902 or e-mail us at pbrumbach@wabeef.org. Visit wabeef.org or beef- itswhatsfordinner.com to learn more about other Checkoff-funded promotions. Follow this and all our activities targeting millennial consumers on social me- dia at Facebook.com/WABeef, Twitter@wabeef, You- Tube@WABeef, Instagram@WABeefLove or pinterest. com/beef/.
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Ketch Pen www.washingtoncattlemen.org
September 2020