Beef Board Grants Foundation Research Funding

The Cattlemen's Beef Promotion and Research Board approved $800,000 in funding to the Foundation for Meat and Poultry Research and Education, a contractor to the Beef Checkoff, for post-harvest beef safety and processed beef nutrition research to be administered by the Foundation in Fiscal Year 2019.  The Foundation has served as a contractor for post-harvest beef safety for several years.  This is the first year the Foundation has received funding for processed beef nutrition research.  Being a contractor provides an opportunity to leverage resources and co-fund research when appropriate.

Post-harvest beef safety research priorities include: Antimicrobial interventions for use on fresh meats, variety meats, head and cheek meat, enhanced and ready-to-eat (RTE) products; a review of factors for the beef industry to consider when evaluating regulatory whole genome sequenced isolates; and strategies for mitigating beef contamination or adulteration from non-pathogenic hazards, e.g. allergens, foreign materials, in a post-harvest commercial facility or supply chain environment.

Processed beef nutrition research priorities include: menu modeling and other analyses to demonstrate that processed beef items can be a component of dietary patterns recommended by the Dietary Guidelines for Americans; white paper(s) to assess what is currently known and any potential data gaps on the mechanistic development of cancer in humans for processed beef product components; and risk-benefit analysis on the consumption of processed beef products as a component of a healthy diet and lifestyle.  Additionally, relevant scientific questions to be addressed by the 2020 Dietary Guidelines Advisory Committee are key research priorities.

Both research tactics include targeted outreach and knowledge sharing. 

The article and others are available in the October 2018 Foundation Focus Newsletter