The discovery of a Holstein with mad cow disease in the United States has producers and sellers of organic and natural beef changing their marketing tactics to make the case — sometimes starkly — that their meat is free of the disease.
The largest natural-food grocery chain is taking the high road in a pitch on national public radio. Whole Foods Market Austin, based in Austin, Texas, describes itself as a ”purveyor of natural beef from cattle raised without animal byproducts and monitored throughout the entire production process”.
Others prefer the direct approach: ”Organic Beef: It’s What’s Safe for Dinner” was the headline on a New Year’s Eve news release from the Organic Valley Meat Company of La Farge, Wisconsin.
Agriculture officials believe that contaminated feed containing protein or bone meal from infected cows or sheep is the most likely source of infection with mad cow disease, or bovine spongiform encephalopathy. They have spent the past three weeks tracking down the meat from the infected cow and others slaughtered with it, as well as other animals that might have eaten the same feed.
Mad cow disease eats holes in the brains of cattle. Humans can develop a similar fatal brain-wasting illness, variant Kreutzfeldt-Jakob disease, by eating contaminated beef products.
To be certified as organic, beef must come from cattle fed vegetarian diets. The meat also must be traceable from the ranch to the dinner table. Government and industry experts say the likelihood that an American consumer might contract the disease is minuscule.
David Martosko, director of research for the industry-backed Centre for Consumer Freedom, said he resents the organic advocates’ ”scaremongering” but understands the business decision.
”For the organic marketers, it’s about capturing market share,” he said. ”They’re in business to make money just like anybody else.”
Several organic companies report increased sales since the December 23 announcement that a cow in Washington state was diagnosed with mad cow disease. Conventional beef sellers complain that organic marketers and consumer advocates are trying to capitalise on public fear about the disease.
Michael Levine, president of Organic Valley Meat, said the situation facing the industry required an eye-catching statement of confidence in his product; hence his ”It’s What’s Safe for Dinner”.
”In a circumstance like this, where consumers are fearful, truly nobody wins,” Levine said. ”To take advantage would be irresponsible. But not to be responsive would also be irresponsible.”
Organic Valley also has distributed to its customers — grocery stores and restaurants — posters for display that list the advantages of the company’s meat.
The organic beef industry has a tiny but growing share of the US beef market. Of roughly 100-million cattle in the US, about 65 000 were certified organic in 2001, according to Agriculture Department figures. Levine said Organic Valley would have sales of less than $10-million this year.
Organic beef typically is far more expensive than conventional beef.
Whole Foods is among Organic Valley’s customers. Not all beef sold at Whole Foods is organic, but the company claims that it adheres to the same standards. Additionally, for ground beef the company buys only whole muscle cuts of beef, considered safe from mad cow infection, and grinds it at each store.
”We don’t want to promote it at the expense of bad news, but we are trying to reassure our customers that they can buy with confidence,” said Whole Foods spokesperson Kate Lowery-Monteilh.
Yet that is much the same message being propounded throughout the US beef industry.
”Conventional beef is perfectly safe to begin with,” said the Centre for Consumer Freedom’s Martosko. ”I have nothing against organic beef. It’s a perfectly fine option for people who are willing to pay more for it.”
The centre and other beef trade groups insist, however, that organic beef is no safer than the conventional product. While cattle prices have dropped, the industry has reported no decrease in Americans’ beef consumption. — Sapa-AP