Meat Institute Approves New Officers and Board Members

Following a successful Protein PACT Summit focused on turning sustainability goals into action, the Meat Institute elected key new officers, Executive Board members and full Board of Directors members for 2025.

“The members elected a slate of leaders who will continue to serve the industry and guide Meat Institute resources to addressing important challenges in workforce safety, sustainability, animal welfare, food security and food safety,” said Julie Anna Potts, President and CEO of the Meat Institute.

Officers

James Snee, Chairman of the Board, President and Chief Executive...

Meat Institute: USDA Continues to Over-Regulate Beef and Cattle Market

Following the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s (USDA) requests for more information on possible new rules under the Packers and Stockyards Act on price discovery in cattle markets, Meat Institute President and CEO Julie Anna Potts today made the following statement:

“Biden’s USDA is once again attempting to assert government control over the free market to the detriment of cattle producers, packers and consumers,” said Potts. “This is not about transparency. This is about the government dictating how cattle may be bought and sold...

Meat Institute Opposes Section 301 Tariffs; Calls for Comprehensive Trade Agreements

In comments submitted to the U.S. Trade Representative (USTR) opposing the proposed modifications to the Section 301 actions, the Meat Institute called for comprehensive trade agreements as a long-term strategy to level the playing field for meat and poultry companies and to hold China accountable for its actions.

“The Section 301 tariffs and resulting retaliatory measures imposed by China have caused undue harm to U.S. agricultural exports, including meat exports. U.S. trade policy, such as the one proposed in this Section 301 action, should not inflict pain...

Proposed Changes to Packers & Stockyards Act Rules Will Hurt Meat and Poultry Producers, Consumers

Will Set Meat Quality & Consumer Demand Back Decades

The latest proposed rule change to the Packers and Stockyards Act by the Biden Administration is attempting to set meat production back decades by encouraging litigation and limiting how livestock producers can market their animals to packers.

In the proposed rule, USDA attempts to circumvent Congress and the courts to reverse the longstanding legal standard that parties must demonstrate harm to competition to sue and win under the Packers and Stockyards Act Section 202(a) or (b)...

Properly Prepared Beef Remains Safe; Meat Institute Calls For Guidance to Protect Workers 

As the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) issued a nationwide order including requiring lactating dairy cows to test negative for Highly Pathogenic Avian Influenza (HPAI) before interstate transport, the Meat Institute today said that properly prepared beef remains safe to eat and called for USDA and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) to provide worker safety guidance specific to beef processors to ensure workers are protected from infection.

“USDA and CDC are working overtime to understand the spread of the virus...

19th Annual Power of Meat Reports Strong Meat Consumption, Evolving Consumer Trends

The number of Americans who describe themselves as meat eaters (80%) and the number of households that purchase meat (98%) remain steady from 2023, while the number seeking to decrease meat consumption has fallen by 20% since 2020, according to the 19th annual Power of Meat report released today by the Meat Institute and FMI—The Food Industry Association.

According to data cited from Circana, overall household penetration averages above 97% for all incomes, ethnicities, household sizes and ages...

Meat Institute, FMI Announce 2024 Leaders of Tomorrow Program Winners

To kick off the 2024 Annual Meat Conference, the Meat Institute and FMI – The Food Industry Association announced 10 winners for the 2024 Leaders of Tomorrow Program.

The winners are: Kaylee Russell, Tyson Foods; Michael Yeater, Albertsons Companies; Tammy Gonzales, Cargill; Mike Van Drie, SpartanNash Co.; Nicole Koch, Seaboard Foods; Liz Holt Welnhofer, Pre Brands; Hillary Niblock, Superior Farms; Marie-Pier Labarre, Cascades; Zachary Stadler, Associated Wholesale Grocers; and Jennifer Hicks, Mitchell Grocery Corp.

“These 10 Leaders of Tomorrow proved themselves to be rising stars in...