Where’s the humane beef?
Canada may be falling behind U.S. in delivering certified meat
As the reaction from a decision by the Earls restaurant chain to begin sourcing its beef from the U.S. instead of Canada continued to rile Albertans, experts say the move should be a wake-up call for the Canadian beef industry.
Supporters of Alberta’s ranchers and feedlot operators continued to take to social media on Thursday to urge a boycott of the Vancouverbased chain, which announced this week it would be buying beef from Kansas instead of Alberta as part of its new commitment to serving only Certified Humane beef.
Earls, which uses more than 900,000 kilograms of beef per year, was looking for a supplier that could provide it with a consistent supply of beef free of antibiotics and steroids, and slaughtered according to criteria set by animal welfare advocate Temple Grandin.
“There was (and is) simply not enough Certified Humane, antibiotic, steroid free beef in Alberta to meet the volume we use, and those we tried were unable to consistently meet our supply needs, not even a portion of it,” said Earls spokeswoman Cate Simpson in an email.
The chain’s decision quickly drew the ire of Alberta beef producers, many of whom felt insulted by the Earls announcement.
Bob Lowe, who operates a ranch near Nanton, said he took it as a “slap in the face.”
“I’d like to challenge anyone from Earls to come out to our operation and show us what we’re doing wrong,” said Lowe. “To insinuate that cattle producers, feedlot operators, anybody who works with livestock of any kind in Canada is not looking after animals humanely . . . Well, that really hurts.”
Lowe said he was frustrated by Earls’ implication that there is something wrong with the use of growth hormones, which he said actually make cattle ranching more environmentally friendly by allowing producers to raise more beef with less water and fewer acres of land.
While antibiotics are used for herd health, Canada has strict standards about the levels that can be present in beef sold for human consumption, he added.
As for animal welfare, Lowe said if he didn’t treat his cattle humanely and ethically, he “wouldn’t have any animals left and would be out of the business.”
But University of Saskatchewan assistant professor Eric Micheels — who specializes in bioresource policy, business, and economics — said he doesn’t believe Earls is saying there is anything wrong with Canadian beef production practices and animal welfare standards. Rather, he said the chain’s decision to source elsewhere is an indication that the Canadian industry has underestimated consumers’ desire to know more about the food they eat.
“Agriculture groups, in general, have been very reactive to this type of shift in consumer preferences,” Micheels said. “They are slower to respond than firms in other industries.”
Sylvain Charlebois, a professor in Dalhousie University’s faculty of agriculture, said the food market is now a fragmented one, with consumers looking for different things.
Some buyers want inexpensive, mass-produced food, while a growing number are looking for specialized products — whether that be organic, hormone-free, or antibiotic-free.
Charlebois said the Canadian industry simply hasn’t moved as fast as the U.S. industry to chase that specialized market.
“You’re dealing with a highly traditionalist, close-minded industry,” Charlebois said.
“Consumers are going to a different place, but it’s hard to find any evidence that the cattle industry is willing to follow the customer.”
Rob McNabb, general manager of the Canadian Cattlemen’s Association, said he doesn’t believe the U.S. cattle industry is ahead of the Canadian industry when it comes to trying to meet consumer demand for new products. But he acknowledged that Canada doesn’t yet have a good certification system to communicate its efforts to customers.
“I guess given the size of our industry versus the size of the industry in the U.S., it’s just a matter of them perhaps getting a little ahead of us on that type of documentation,” McNabb said.
In 2014, a committee of beef industry and environmental leaders formed the Canadian Roundtable for Sustainable Beef, dedicated to ensuring beef production in this country is environmentally sound, socially responsible and economically viable. The committee will try to define what sustainable means, then try to demonstrate to retailers and consumers that choosing Canadian beef is an ethical, environmentally responsible thing to do.
The work of the roundtable will be critical if the Canadian beef industry wants to keep up with customer demand for ethically sourced product, McNabb said.
The outcry over Earls’ decision was so severe that even a significant number of politicians waded into the issue.
Opposition Wildrose Leader Brian Jean and federal Conservative MP Jason Kenney both questioned the move on social media, as did Saskatchewan Premier Brad Wall.
However, Debi Andrus, a marketing professor with the University of Calgary’s Haskayne School of Business, said she’s not convinced that Earls made a mistake with the Certified Humane move.
She said Earls’ market research would have told the company that its customers are willing to pay for a specialty product.
“I’m not sure Earls was prepared for the backlash they are receiving, but they are trying to differentiate themselves by meeting demand from their customers. And that’s a good marketing strategy,” she said.
Earls has said if at any point the Canadian industry starts producing the volume of Certified Humane, antibiotic-free and steroid-free beef it requires, it will be happy to begin buying beef from Canada again.
You’re dealing with a highly traditionalist, close-minded industry.