“From Farm to Fork Canadian Beef offers a unique story that can be told through the centre.”
And so begins a new chapter of one of this country’s staple food products as told by Canada Beef Chair Jack Hextall.
Only a year after it was announced, the Canadian Beef Centre of Excellence has opened its doors to the world in an effort to better tell the story of Canadian beef.
Federal Agriculture Minister Gerry Ritz says the centre will allow the beef sector to take better advantage of the brand foot-print the country has in every market of value around the world.
“It’s more about maintaining those markets, I’ve been saying for a number of years and the industry is agreeing too that we have a lot of product and rather than selling what we have we need to sell what they want,” says Ritz. “The head butcher from here just spent some time in the States working with the Spanish group out of Mexico, they met in Kansas City learning how to cut beef for that market. The same thing with Japan, you know, we order a 10 oz. Sir Loin, that would feed a village in Japan, so we need to know how to cut our carcass, in a way that is not detrimental to our carcass but gives us the most return in that market-place.”
Canada Beef Chair Jack Hextall says the centre demonstrates the country’s commitment to the Canadian Beef Brand.
“From the passionate beef producers and the high quality products they produce to the world-class standards and sustainable industry that sets Canadian beef apart,” says Hextall. “The Canadian Beef Centre of Excellence provides the state of the art facility where large and small partners and stake-holders all along the beef value chain can tell the Canadian beef story and create affinity for our world-class beef products.”
The centre includes a full commercial kitchen line, full testing and production facility, a consumer kitchen, a retail meat case, classroom as well as hosting and dining room facilities.
Minister of State for Western Economic Diversification Michelle Rempel may have summed it up best when she told the crowd in attendance that “The centre is about turning stakeholders into steak-holders.”
