Senior Farm and Ranch Broadcaster Ron Hays talked in recent days with the Director of Producer Engagement Kara Lee about the Certified Angus Beef Ranch to Table program that was established in 2023- and is expected to gain momentum in 2024. Lee says “We really see the Ranch to Table line extension as a producer engagement effort that allows those producers who are willing to jump through the hoops- accessing grading and going through all that whole process to be able to access Certified Angus Beef branding where it makes sense.”
Angus cattle producers who sell beef directly to consumers now have access to a new program called Ranch to Table, which permits them to use the Certified Angus Beef stamp to market their product. Ranch to Table is a program offered through CAB and was created to allow producers the opportunity to sell premium Angus products to their customers.
To be eligible for the program, producers must raise cattle with registered Angus genetics, provide proof of Angus bull registrations, have current Beef Quality Assurance certification and provide standard procedures from their meat processors. Additionally, cattle must meet the CAB brand’s live-animal assessment with predominantly solid-black hides.
Carcasses must also meet CAB’s 10 specifications as verified by a U.S. Department of Agriculture grader. These requirements include: modest or high marbling; medium to fine marbling texture; cattle harvested at less than 30 months of age by dentition and only A-maturity lean; 10- to 16-square-inch ribeye area; 1,100 pounds of hot carcass weight or less; 1-inch or less fat thickness; superior muscling; practically free of capillary rupture; no dark cutters and no neck hump exceeding 2 inches. The burden is on licensed producers to work with their meat processor and USDA grader to ensure that brand specifications are met.
Product reporting is required, but CAB will provide reporting templates based on whether monthly head counts are sufficient or if more detailed reporting is required. CAB requests applicants submit a marketing plan for approval to the program. It should include a consumer-targeted webpage, a customer service plan with a money-back guarantee, and a detailed sales strategy. According to the CAB website, an internal team will assess submitted marketing plans to confirm potential partnerships are favorable to both the producer and CAB.
CAB provides a special marketing kit to help producers full of resources to with promotion of CAB’s premium products. To learn more or apply for the program, click here for the Table to Ranch section of the CAB Cattle website.
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