The New York and South Dakota beef councils recently teamed up to take 10 social influencers from New York, New Jersey, and Connecticut on a day-long “BEefTogether” Meat Retreat.
The April 13 event was focused on beef processing and fabrication hosted at Hudson Table located in Hoboken, New Jersey. The day began with a trip to the Strassburger Steak facility located in Carlstadt, New Jersey. Attendees had the opportunity to tour the meat cutting floor, the aging room, and learn about ordering, packaging, and shipping. Suzanne Strassburger, also known as “Suzy Sirloin,” is the CEO of the fifth generation meat family business. Attendees enjoyed this behind the scenes peak into beef processing and had all of their questions answered by the highly knowledgeable and experienced staff at Strassburger Steaks.
The second portion of the program was led by Steve Olson, retired USDA Livestock and Meat Marketing Specialist, who has more than 30 years of experience in meat grading, purchasing, and fabricating. The social influencers had the opportunity to hone their butchery skills by following Olson as he guided them step by step through the fabrication of a 112A Rib subprimal and 180 Top Loin subprimal.
New York Beef Council Director of Industry Relations and Consumer Promotions, Katherine Brosnan noted, “this event provided us the opportunity to engage directly with key influencers and provide them with a unique experience exploring an extremely important component of the beef industry. These influencers have a large social network and strong rapport with their followers. Their voices as beef advocates provides a direct link to thousands of consumers who may have questions about beef production, processing, or cookery. Therefore arming these bloggers with beef skills and information will help them to share the beef story.”
One of the attendees reflected upon the event by saying, “I absolutely loved the opportunity to get “hands-on” to break down those subprimal cuts. That was so unique, and I want more experience in that realm now! It was also REALLY awesome that we got to take our butchered meat home with us to cook. The grill is coming out next week!”
Events such as this allow the checkoff to engage directly with influencers, including bloggers, to highlight beef’s versatility, quality, and nutritional benefits.
