Published 8:15 am Friday, October 20, 2023
The Beef Checkoff is promoting the benefits of beef for infants as they transition into eating solid foods.
Funded by National Beef Checkoff dollars, the “Early Bites With Beef” campaign reached 300 medical offices, focusing on family practitioners, pediatricians and obstetricians/gynecologists, said Jackie Madill, executive director of the Washington Beef Commission.
The campaign focuses on the nutrients in beef, such as protein, iron, zinc and choline, which regulates memory, mood and muscle control.
The checkoff has funded beef nutrition research for a decade, Madill said. The campaign kicked off nationwide in 2021.
“We’re not just turning four-month-old babies loose with a big old hunk of steak,” Madill said. “The critical piece was the ‘How to’ — how do we help our consumers know how to serve beef safely to their baby?”
After two years, 90% of respondents recommend beef in the diets of their youngest patients and advise parents to include beef earlier because of the campaign, Madill said.
“When Mom is sitting there saying, ‘My kid will only eat mac and cheese and chicken nuggets, what do I do?’ … the doctors are saying, ‘This is a solution for my patients that they understand,'” Madill said.
It’s critical to make sure kids and families are comfortable with beef and serving it regularly, Madill said.
“We want to say, ‘Here’s the science, and here’s a recipe,'” she said.
For example, before adding ground beef to a shepherd’s pie, a parent might take a portion of the beef and use their home blender to make a puree, Madill said as an example.
Over time, they graduate to a thicker puree, then a chopped or smashed version or crumbles as the baby begins to use their hands at about 6 to 8 months old, then on to small food or finger foods and utensils.
“It’s really this wonderful evolution that can begin as early as 4 to 6 months, and follow the development of the child from 10 to 24 months as their palate evolves,” Madill said.
The Washington commission last year expanded upon the medical office campaign with a digital advertising campaign aimed directly at consumers.
The beef commission saw more than 250,000 impressions over several weeks in the springtime of 2022.
“We know that pediatricians appreciated the content, and when we delivered directly to consumers, consumers engaged with the content,” Madill said. “That speaks powerfully to me.”
It would be difficult to pinpoint the exact amount of increased sales that could result from the campaign, Madill said. The commission’s mission is to increase beef demand.
“It really boils down to constantly engaging the next generation of consumer,” she said. “While millennial parents and Generation X parents are having these conversations at the moment, they’re raising the next generation — the Gen Zers and the Gen Alpha.”
Generation Z is the term used to describe people born between 1997 and 2013. Generation Alpha, or Gen Alpha, is the term used for people born between 2010 and 2023.
Parents introducing solid food into their child’s diet should consult their physician or health care provider first, Madill said.
The commission next plans to address nutrient gaps in adolescents, particularly girls aged 8 to 14 years, Madill said.
“I love that we’ve got beef nutrition research and beef meal solutions for every age and every stage of life,” she said.
https://www.beefitswhatsfordinner.com/nutrition/beef-in-the-early-years
https://www.wabeef.org/nutrition/early-bites-with-beef
https://www.beefitswhatsfordinner.com/nutrition/feeding-beef-to-your-baby
