BPOC approves Fiscal Year 2026 Beef Checkoff Plan of Work

The Cattlemen’s Beef Board (CBB) will invest approximately $38.1 million into programs of beef promotion, research, consumer information, industry information, foreign marketing and producer communications during Fiscal Year 2026 (FY26), subject to U.S. Department of Agriculture approval.

At the end of its Sept. 3-4 meeting in Denver, the Beef Promotion Operating Committee (BPOC) approved checkoff funding for a total of 14 authorization requests or grant proposals for the fiscal year beginning Oct. 1. 

The committee, which includes 10 producers and importers from CBB and 10 producers from the Federation of State Beef Councils, also recommended full CBB approval of a budget amendment to reflect the split of funding between budget categories affected by their decisions.

Approved authorization requests

Nine contractors and three subcontractors brought 14 authorization requests worth approximately $49 million to the BPOC this week, approximately $10.9 million more than the funds available from the CBB budget.

“We continue to be impressed by the quality and creativity of the proposals our contractors bring forward each year, which makes funding decisions especially tough,” said Ryan Moorhouse, CBB and BPOC chair. “While we receive many outstanding proposals, our limited resources mean we can’t fund everything we’d like. Inflation continues to reduce the impact of each checkoff dollar, so prioritizing the most impactful programs is more important than ever.”

“As expected, this year’s authorization requests were full of fresh ideas and innovative approaches to support the Beef Checkoff’s core efforts of research, promotion, foreign marketing, industry and consumer information and producer communications. I’m proud of how our committee worked together to thoughtfully balance the budget and direct our limited resources in the most strategic way,” Moorhouse continued. “I’m grateful to our contractors and fellow committee members for their dedication, and I look forward to seeing the results of their hard work in FY26.”

In the end, the BPOC approved proposals from nine national beef organizations for funding through the FY26 CBB budget.

This includes $705,000 to the American Farm Bureau Foundation for Agriculture; $1.8 million to CBB; $650,000 to the Meat Foundation; $1 million to the Meat Import Council of America and Northeast Beef Promotion Initiative; $35,000 to the Meat Institute; $235,000 to the Meat Institute and New York Beef Council; $25.1 million to the National Cattlemen’s Beef Association; $75,000 to the National Institute for Animal Agriculture; $650,000 to the U.S. Cattlemen’s Association and Kansas State University and $7.9 million to the U.S. Meat Export Federation.

Budget components 

Broken out by budget component – as outlined by the Beef Promotion and Research Act of 1985 – the FY26 Plan of Work for the CBB and Research Board budget includes $9.2 million for promotion programs, including beef and veal campaigns focusing on beef’s nutritional value, eating experience, convenience and production and $9.3 million for research programs focusing on pre- and post-harvest beef safety, scientific affairs, nutrition, sustainability, product quality, culinary technical expertise and consumer perceptions. 

Another $7.7 million will be used for consumer information programs, including Northeast influencer outreach and public relations initiatives, national consumer public relations including nutrition-influencer relations and work with primary- and secondary-school curriculum directors nationwide to get accurate information about the beef industry into classrooms. 

Additional initiatives include outreach and engagement with food, culinary, nutrition and health leaders; media and public relations efforts and supply chain engagement.

Additionally, $2.2 million will be used for industry information programs, including dissemination of accurate information about the beef industry to counter misinformation from other groups, as well as funding for checkoff participation in the annual national industrywide symposium about antibiotic use. Additional efforts in this program area include beef advocacy training and issues and crisis management and response.

To round out the funding, $7.9 million will be used for foreign marketing and education, focusing on 13 regions representing more than 90 countries around the world and $1.8 million for producer communications, which includes investor outreach using national communications and direct communications to producers and importers about checkoff results. 

Elements of this program include ongoing producer listening and analysis, industry collaboration and outreach and continued development of a publishing strategy and platform and a state beef council content hub.

The full FY26 CBB budget is approximately $42.4 million. Separate from the authorization requests, other expenses funded include $305,000 for program evaluation; $762,000 for program development; $280,000 for checkoff education resources; $575,000 for U.S. Department of Agriculture oversight; $220,000 for state services; $200,000 for supporting services and litigation and approximately $2 million for CBB administration. 

The FY26 program budget represents an increase of slightly less than one percent, or $195,000, from the $42.2 million FY25 budget.

Established as part of the 1985 Farm Bill, the Beef Checkoff assesses one dollar per head on the sale of live domestic and imported cattle, in addition to a comparable assessment on imported beef and beef products. The checkoff acts as a catalyst for change and is designed to stimulate beef sales and consumption through a combination of initiatives including consumer advertising, research, public relations and new-product development. For more information about the Beef Checkoff and its programs, visit drivingdemandforbeef.com or call 303-220-9890.