Beef Fact Friday: Higher Beef Consumption Does NOT Mean Higher Health Risks

We’ve all been hearing on the news that meat consumption is too high and it’s causing a rise health issues, but this week’s #BeefFactFriday is here to tell you otherwise!

According to www.FactsAboutBeef.com, the average American consumes 5.1oz of protein foods per day, and the 2010 Dietary Guidelines for Americans recommends consuming 5.5oz of protein foods per day. This means that Americans are consuming these types of foods within dietary guidelines! But wait, there's more...

Even better than that- research suggests that Americans could benefit from adding a high-quality protein, such as lean beef, to their diets because of the positive effect it could have on weight management, disease prevention and healthy aging. Further, most Americans prefer a lean cut of beef which is packed with powerful nutrients which, as part of a heart-healthy diet and lifestyle, has proven to help improve cholesterol levels.

As the graph shows, total and saturated fat from meats have decreased over the years despite higher intakes. Beef consumption contributes less cholesterol to American diets, has the same heart-healthy fatty acids found in olive oil and contributes less than 5 percent of total calories to an American diet! So #EatMoreBeef and live a healthy life! Get more information on the benefits of lean beef at http://woman.thenest.com/benefits-lean-beef-1826.html.

Throwback Thursday: 1979

The year 1979 was a good one for Kittiwake Farms of Jasper, Ala! This week’s #ThrowbackThursday pictures the trophy presentation of the Reserve Champion Bull at the Alabama Polled Hereford Association’s annual Blue Ribbon Show. From L-R are Kittiwake owner Grady Sparks, show judge Truman Lawrence and Kittiwake manager Bob Ebert. 

After many out of Alabama while operating in other states, Kittiwake returned to Alabama. Everyone loves a good "return to the farm" story!

What's Going On Wednesday: July 29, 2015

The AJCA Round-Up is over and the final "thank you" letters are being sent today, and our staff is catching its breath from the busy weekend and gearing up for a busy month of August! Not too much exciting stuff is going on around the office this week, so for #WhatsGoingOnWednesday, we're going to do more of a #WhatsAheadWednesday! Check it out:

Beef Checkoff at the FACS Summer Conference

Erin Beasley is spending her day doing checkoff work in Birmingham as she runs a beef education course with Culinard Culinary School. This afternoon she will be talking
to Family and Consumer Sciences (FACS) teachers during a breakout session at their summer conference. Erin will be presenting the new lesson plans for beef consumer education materials.

Alabama Legislature 

The special session reconvenes Monday, Aug. 3 and following the session at the State House, Ag Commissioner John McMillan with the Department of Ag and other ag organizations in the state are having a dinner meeting with house and senate leadership about topics discussed in the session. The dinner will be hosted at the Alabama Cattlemen's Association building, and ACA reps will be in attendance. 

What's Ahead?

While we catch our breath and unwind from the Round-Up, we are also preparing ourselves for the busy month ahead. August brings with it many important meetings that will have an effect on future events hosted by the ACA and the SLE. 

During August we will be having a SLE committee meetings to work out a schedule of events for the 2016 rodeo, and the Junior Beef Expo committee will be in to work on the 2016 state show in March during SLE season. Meetings to discuss and plan the remodeling the MOOseum will come back to life in hopes of taking some large steps toward updating the visitor's experience. Last but certainly not least, our Summer Board of Directors meeting will be on August 27 at the ACA building. 

Tasty Tuesday: Italian Mini Meatloaves

Meatloaf is always one of those meals that the kids go "ewwww" to, but now you have a chance to change their minds! The website www.BeefItsWhatsForDinner.com is packed full of creative, out-of-the-box recipes that can make dinnertime fun! Not only does it come with great recipes, but you can get nutrition information, step-by-step instructions and cooking tips there too!

For example- like we said before- kids aren't historically the biggest fans of meatloaf, but they can be with this week's #TastyTuesday recipe! Make that meatloaf mini and kids will go from turning their noses up to begging for more! 

These five-way mini meatloaves are so fun! They come with the base recipe for the meatloaf and four different cultural spins that you can add to give that loaf a little love- including Italian, Greek, Spanish and Asian. If you're more of a cheese and ketchup meatloaf fan, that's fine, but we thought the "Italian" recipe incorporated some typical pantry (or fridge!) items that could add some zest to your family's dinner. 

Check out this fun recipe that kids are sure to love!

Having trouble seeing this graphic? Click here for the recipe.

Nutrition information per serving, Italian version:

• 229 calories
• 10 g fat (4 g saturated fat; 4 g monounsaturated fat)
• 108 mg cholesterol
• 381 mg sodium
• 7 g carbohydrate
• 0.7 g fiber
• 27 g protein
• 7.0 mg niacin
• 0.4 mg vitamin B6
• 2.4 mcg vitamin B12
• 3.4 mg iron
• 21.8 mcg selenium
• 6.2 mg zinc
• 108.0 mg choline

This recipe is an excellent source of protein, niacin, vitamin B6, vitamin B12, selenium, zinc and choline; and a good source of iron.

Movie Monday: Peterson Farm Brothers Collection

It's no secret that farming can get tiring, redundant and just downright scary at times as family farmers. If you ever find yourself feeling down-and-out about it all, just remember that you are doing something amazing every single day. 

You are supplying 25% of the world's beef supply with only 10% of the world's cattle. 

You are providing a safe, wholesome, heart-healthy, nutrient-packed product that moms can confidently feed their children. 

You are part of the single largest segment of American agriculture. 

You are a vital part to the longevity of our industry, and without you, the heritage of the "cowboy" would ultimately disappear. 

The Peterson Farm Brothers (PFB) have mastered the art of loving their job and making it fun. They might can help you gain a new perspective on the whoas of everyday farm labor.

Tired of doing the same old chores? Let the PFBs remind you how much your cattle and consumers depend on you:

Wishing you could take off on a summer vacation but can't because you've got cattle to tend? The PFBs can remind you that taking care of livestock can be as fun as it is important:

Got the baling season blues? The PFBs can remind you that it's necessary to stock up for the wintertime. If nothing else, they can give you a catchy tune to sing on those endless hours of pulling a baler:

Volatile market got you dizzy? The PFBs can remind you that's important to farm, farm, farm:

And last, if you're tired of working long hours "farmer style," then let the PFBs cheer you up and remind you that you're not alone: 

At the end of the day, farmers are hardworking people. We appreciate our farmers today and everyday for the hours and hours of hard labor they put in to feed the world a safe, wholesome product! We hope these fun videos can cheer you up on a bad day and encourage you to keep on doing what you do best on a good one! Thanks, farmers!