As an active CattleWoman, rancher’s wife, teacher, and writer, I know the anti-beef campaign in this country is real and being waged in earnest, and it’s not based on truth. Therefore, education has to be number one for cattle people like us, esp. in regions where people are so removed from the source of their food. Do people REALLY believe some of this stuff? YES. So, it’s naive of us, as ranchers and producers, to think that consumers will not listen to this ridiculous rant.
Unfortunately, we’ve seen the pendulum swinging against us before. We thought with the upswing in beef restaurants, etc., that maybe the ‘fight’ was won, but I don’t think agriculturalists will ever be done educating the public. It’s an image that we want to combat, too, so that consumers and public alike have an accurate picture of us…..
The good news is that most consumers simply want the truth and they want enough information that they can make informed decisions!
One of my recent decisions, personally, has been to find ways to share the truth — without being overbearing. In order to win hearts and minds, we have to SHARE what we know, not beat people up over it (even if that’s what we’d LIKE to do sometimes
