ESTEVAN - Chad and Crystal Ross are back from Japan and South Korea, where they learned more about the importance of the Asian nations to the Canadian cattle industry.
Chad Ross is the vice-president of Canada Beef, which is the organization that's responsible for using beef producers' check-off dollars to market Canadian beef, both domestically and internationally. The couple was part of a delegation called the Canada Beef Road Show in Asia in November.
"They wanted a producer to come along, so my job was to tell about the production side of the business," said Chad Ross.
They attended three meetings across Japan in the evenings – seminars followed by receptions. He said invitees were beef importers, distributors, processors and retailers.
"We were able to have seminars and speak to them. Crystal and I spoke, along with representatives from Canada Beef, as well as representatives from processors in Canada," he said.
In between, they had a rigorous schedule of meetings in one-on-one sessions in which they talked about Canadian beef and how it is raised. And they talked about programs that Canada Beef can offer to help promote the product in their countries.
"We also went right to the retailers, and there were several retailers that we visited that had Canada beef promotions right in their meat case. And so, we were able to go there, meet the meat staff, meet customers and answer any questions that they would have."
He was thrilled to have Crystal join him because they are partners in their cattle business.
"Crystal and I both represented producers all across Canada on our production practices that we use when raising cattle and ultimately beef," said Ross.
Four days were spent in South Korea, where they attended a seminar and reception and met with more industry leaders.
The trip overseas was a great learning experience. Ross said they were immersed in the culture, and they also learned a lot about businesses and how they market beef.
"One thing that we learned was that trade disruptions in Canada due to labour issues are concerning to them, especially the middlemen who have products sold. An importer who imports Canadian beef and then sells it to a distributor or a retailer, if they have product to deliver and they can't take delivery of that product because of a labour disruption in Canada, it's very concerning to them."
If the disruptions occur, then the importers will have to take their business elsewhere.
They're also very cost-conscious, Ross said. Beef has gone up in price considerably in Japan and South Korea because of supply issues, and that has affected businesses. Their currency has gone down, giving them less buying power.
"They love our beef. They know our beef is high-quality. They know it is safe and they know it's consistent," said Ross. "They had a lot of questions for Crystal and me as far as the safety of our production practices, and what we do to raise our beef, and is it environmentally sustainable, and are we humane in the treatment of our animals. We reassured them that we definitely are."
Being environmentally sustainable was particularly important in South Korea, Ross said.
"It was fun to tell them our production practices that we are doing that really set us apart from almost any country in the world."
Both countries are big importers of Canadian beef. Ross said approximately one half of Canadian beef is exported to other nations. About 70 per cent of Canadian beef exports go to the U.S. Japan is the No. 2 market and South Korea is No. 4.
Ross said the checkoff-paying producers play an important role in the cattle industry, and Canada Beef does a lot in marketing the product and offering quality to the customers.
