This week, the National Corn Growers Association (NCGA) participated in the Cattle Industry Convention & NCBA Tradeshow to engage with corn’s largest animal ag consumer, beef cattle. The National Cattlemen’s Beef Association Annual Cattle Industry and Trade Show, #CattleCon22, was attended by thousands in the ag industry, including representatives of the National Corn Growers Association who were on hand to talk about beef and corn’s sustainability story.
“The beef industry consumes over 1.25 billion bushels of corn annually,” said NCGA Market Development Director Sarah McKay. “It’s important for us to engage with our partners and talk to them about not only some of the exciting research and projects we are working on in the feed space but also the sustainable synergies between beef and corn production. We have a great story to tell in this space, and it’s important to continue working together to share that narrative.”
NCGA hosted a Learning Lounge session, “Sizzlin’ Sustainability: Meating Consumer Demand with Corn-Fed Beef,” through the Market Development Action Team’s (MDAT) sponsorship of the Cattlemen Education Series (CES). The panel covered corn and beef’s sustainability relationship and how it ties into the overall marketability of beef while also discussing how these efforts deliver return on investment for ranchers and Certified Angus Beef (CAB). Panel participants included Troy Schneider, Chairman for MDAT; NCGA Chairman John Linder; Nicole Erceg, Director of Communications at CAB; and the panel was moderated by Sarah McKay, NCGA Director of Market Development.
One out of four bushels of added corn demand is due to beef and pork exports, with the beef industry providing $5.7 billion in corn value. DDGS account for nearly 8% of total domestic corn usage.
While at the convention, NCGA President Chris Edgington, Chairman John Linder, MDAT Chair Troy Schneider, and Chair of U.S. Meat Export Federation Mark Swanson, were interviewed on the radio show Agriculture of America on the American Ag Network. You can listen to the episode here. Chairman Linder also did an interview for NCBA’s Cattlemen to Cattlemen found on RFD-TV Network. NCGA President Chris Edgington also participated on a panel for a Sustainability Forum that was also held at the convention.
Couldn’t attend this year? No problem - parts of the Learning Lounge session, including the Q&A was live-streamed online via Instagram, so be sure to follow @corngrowers to stay current with the latest involvements of the corn team!