Making The Grade With Loblaw

Ontario Corn Fed Beef is earning rave reviews from officials at Loblaw Companies.

Brad Porter, senior category director for conventional meat and seafood, says they had high hopes for the brand when the company launched it in 156 stores across Ontario last May.

Not only did it meet expectations, the products also played a big role in delivering higher customer satisfaction scores in the meat departments.

Porter shared some of the consumer statistics during his presentation at the Beef Industry Convention.

Branding Presents Opportunity

A recent study in Ontario dispels the notion that consumers are only interested in cheap food. In fact, the survey by Strategic Research Associates (SRA) of Guelph found that consumers are not only willing to pay more for safer food; they will also pay a premium for beef raised in Ontario.

John Vieira, director of client services for SRA, shared the results of the study at the Beef Industry Convention in London.

Building On The Momentum

Looking ahead to 2012, Jim Clark, executive director of the Ontario Cattle Feeders’ Association, says the top priorities will be meeting increased demand for Ontario Corn Fed Beef and doing more to promote brand awareness.

Clark told Beef Industry Convention in London (Jan. 6) that 2011 proved to be a monumental year for the brand as the OCFA worked to maintain existing partnerships while also expanding the program to include Canada’s largest food retailer, Loblaw Companies.

Lending A Helping Hand

The Ontario Cattle Feeders’ Association was honoured and humbled by the invitation to assist in the tornado relief efforts in Goderich. The “There’s No Taste Like Home,” mobile kitchen unit was dispatched to the area on Aug. 25.

We fed approximately 500 people during lunch and we also cooked beef for supper that night. Whatever was left over was used to make cold beef sandwiches.  Enough beef was prepared to feed 2,000 people.

Ten Years of Corn Fed Beef Quality

It’s been ten years and counting for two meat businesses that have enthusiastically supported the Ontario Corn Fed Beef program since its inception. Norwich Packers (Norpac) was the first provincial processor to come on board while Ted Farron’s Gourmet Butcher Shop in Windsor was one of the first retailers to feature the signature brand of the Ontario Cattle Feeders’ Association.

The Ontario Corn Fed Beef program was launched in June of 2001.

For Ted Farron, the program represented a good news story that was needed at the time.

“The reason I came on board is we had some bad news in the meat business and negative things about Canadian beef,” recalls Farron, noting that people were becoming more concerned about the quality and safety of beef products. “I was glad to see that Ontario stepped up to come out with a real clean program; no animal by-products fed to the cattle, giving people the assurance of a quality piece of meat.”

As for his customers’ response, Farron says the reaction to the Ontario Corn Fed Beef program has been terrific.

Getting A Leg Up On The Competition

Ontario Corn Fed Beef producers are hoping the new deal with Loblaw Companies will solidify their position in the marketplace and improve the prices they receive for their cattle.

“It’s a significant amount of shelf space for the consumer meat market in Ontario and we have the opportunity and privilege now so that we can supply that market to them,” said Dale Pallister, President of the Ontario Cattle Feeders’ Association.

Pallister, who farms near Dundalk, was among the first group of farmers to be certified for the program ten years ago.

Reducing The Risk of E. coli O157

A new market research program is set to measure value chain attitudes, behaviour and public opinion towards an on-farm E. coli O157 risk reduction program for the Ontario Corn Fed Beef brand.

The Ontario Cattle Feeders’ Association (OCFA) has been granted funding through the Canadian Agricultural Adaptation Program for three years of market research on the value related to reduction of this food safety risk.

The project will launch this year with a baseline attitudes study of processors, distributors and retailers. Researchers will measure their awareness, attitudes and perceptions of E. coli O157 risk, and the value of pre-harvest risk reduction. Consumers will also be surveyed on their interest and willingness to pay for the integration of such tools into the Corn Fed Beef branded program.