TBC News

October 25, 2021

Fall in Texas: New Beginnings With Molly

This is the time of year when our new calves are born, and I look forward to returning from my trips to see the new babies and their mamas out in our pasture. I often grab my binoculars and gaze at the cows near our house for a while in the hopes I’ll get lucky and see one actually entering the world right at that moment.

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Fall brings new life to our ranch, and while I’ve experienced those births many times over the years, they never fail to thrill me. It’s one more sign of the new beginnings that emerge here each year as winter approaches. At the Texas Beef Council, we’re also experiencing some “firsts” as our new fiscal year 2022 gets underway.

  • September 30 marked the completion of our annual marketing calendar and the start of our program evaluation process. As we kick off FY22, we’re excited to begin implementing our recently published Long Range Plan that details our board’s vision for the next five years. This plan gives us a roadmap to follow as we research beef, educate consumers about its many benefits and promote it as a delicious, healthy protein. We’ll be diligently working from that brand-new template to bring exciting, innovative – but most importantly, effective – programs to life.
  • In early November, our new directors experienced their first meeting of TBC and the Beef Promotion and Research Council of Texas. This meeting generated great excitement and anticipation as we brought in a fresh group of ideas and leadership to provide the thoughtful strategy that we need to continue driving beef demand.
  • “How to best connect with consumers” was an important topic at this meeting. Over the years, we’ve found that, by educating consumers about beef and helping them successfully prepare beef recipes, we effectively encourage them to choose beef again and again. The holidays are fast approaching, so as we promote beef to consumers, I challenge all of you to find new ways to include beef on your dinner tables and create your own new meal traditions. (Pro tip: you can find some amazing recipe inspirations at BeefLovingTexans.com!)
  • Reinforcing beef’s positive sustainability message is also an integral part of our new Long Range Plan. As we head into the new year, expect to see us intensify our efforts to communicate the great story of ranching’s positive impact on communities, the environment, human nutrition and quality of life in Texas.

A favorite quote of mine goes something like this: “Children are a gift to a future we will never see.” I feel the same way about agriculture and ranching. Our work to steward lands, livestock, wildlife and open spaces is our gift to the future we will never see. It takes time, care, planning and sometimes a lot of faith to work in ag. Personal opinion, fiercely advocated, can overshadow science-based best practices. It’s not new to ranchers and agriculturalists, but it’s also not going away. What IS new is that advocacy for our work and how we manage our lands and livestock must evolve and grow more powerful through the stories we share.

While some may see fall as the transition from summer’s hectic growth to winter’s quiet chill, truly, this season is a stepping stone on the path to many new ideas, thoughts and initiatives for TBC. All are rooted in tradition, leadership, stewardship and sharing the things that bring us joy and make us unique. Our values, passion for our product and our commitment to our land and livestock are all worthy of sharing. It’s yet another day in the life of people who work tirelessly to create a future they will never see. Our job is to communicate on behalf of our stakeholders who produce beef. We will continue to do so with enthusiasm, transparency, truth and effectiveness. And there’s absolutely nothing new about that.