5 Reasons Why Farmers Should Support Wendy's

Image courtesy: iSpot.Tv

More often than not, the only time we hear from fast-food restaurants is when they are making some groundbreaking announcement about their food safety procedures or their supply chain. In general, neither are a welcome message for consumers or producers alike.

However Wendy’s, the pro-ginger burger chain, is different than Subway, Panera and Chipotle – all of which have made headline-generating statements about their food supply. Wendy’s actually supports agriculture and wants to work together with farmers and ranchers to market delicious, safe and healthy food.

5 reasons why farmers and ranchers should support Wendy’s:

Wendy’s wants to Work WITH Beef Producers – not take away important technologies like antibiotics. In a press conference at Cattle Industry Convention, [reported on by BEEF Magazine], Wendy’s spokesperson Liliana Esposito said the chain wants to collaborate with producers to refine, reduce and replace antibiotics but they respect that when an animal is sick, it NEEDS treatment. Esposito added, “The best beef comes from healthy well-cared for animals. A sick animal needs to be treated and you won’t hear differently from us.”

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Local or Organic Doesn't Matter - Chipotle Isn't Helping Your Diet

Disclaimer: I'm fully supportive of organic and natural producers. My in-laws produce and market natural beef and I have friends who raise organic/natural produce and/or livestock. To each their own - consumers have choices and so do producers. This post is focused on Chipotle's desire to disparage farmers instead of market their food.



Homemade burritos - no gimmicks, just food.

Chipotle wants you to eat "Food with Integrity" - meaning their food - which comes from local, organic farmers and ranchers. Except their food isn't always organic nor is it always locally sourced, as I've shared previously. But that's for a different day.

What I'm talking about is how Chipotle brandishes their "Food with Integrity" campaign and attacks conventional producers while pushing calorie-laden burritos down consumers' throats. And when I say attack, I'm not exaggerating. One need look no further than "Scarecrow" or "Farmed & Dangerous" to see that Chipotle has a vendetta against those who don't raise or produce food that is up to their standards.

However, while Chipotle heralds "Food with Integrity" ad nauseum, they have no problem marketing serving meals with such high caloric content that even the recently crowned Queen of American Food Decisions, Michelle Obama, should raise an eyebrow. Serving up a burrito that packs the caloric-punch of 1/2 of one's daily recommended intake is not exactly on the moral up and up since they tout their burritos as a superior product. Wouldn't that be sort of like Burger King promoting their chain as healthy and good for you while serving deep-fried-everything [I love BK by the way, so no offense intended].

For example, IF I ate at Chipotle [which I don't. EVER], I would get a steak burrito with rice and cheese and maybe some black beans because I'm [mostly] anti-vegetable. However, for argument's sake, let's say I was to order a steak burrito with white rice, black beans, fajita veggies, some salsa and cheese. Sounds fairly healthy, right? Protein, veggies, whole grains and no high-fat sour cream or guac - all very healthy things to consume, in moderation. Until you visit their nutritional calculator page and input that exact same order only to find out that you've just inhaled 935 calories. Do you know how many miles I have to run to burn 935 calories? I looked it up -- 10 MILES. That's a lot of running for a freakin' burrito. I should be honest here and say that 935 calories is about 75% of my RDI so it would wreck my diet more than most peoples'; however, even for a full-grown man whose daily RDI is ~2000 calories, 935 is still a lot for one meal.

So, instead of dragging down every producer who prefers to let pigs and chickens live inside climate controlled barns and outside of a coyote's mouth, or every beef producer who takes advantage of scientifically-proven safe technology that allows him to be efficient [during a time when the beef supply is the lowest it's been in 60 years], maybe Chipotle should focus on marketing their food instead of marketing their ideals.

McDonald's, Olive Garden, Red Lobster - all restaurants that I love that aren't trying to guilt me into eating their food. Which is why I still eat chicken nuggets, spaghetti and meatballs, and lobster tail platters.

Selling burritos must be super-hard when you play on a level playing field.

Until next time,
~ Buzzard ~

The thoughts and opinions of this blog post strictly represent that of Brandi Buzzard Frobose and are NOT representative of any other entity or organization.

Chipotle: A World of Pure Imagination

About four years ago, I realized the extremely important role advocacy plays in agriculture and saw the limitless value of telling my story. I’m proud to share the stories about the small role I play in food production while working alongside my father, husband and in-laws. I do this because there are plenty of people out there that daily strive to push consumers towards niche products such as organic beef, cage-free eggs or vegan bacon (which is not really bacon, btw). While I’m all about choice, I don’t like it when we suggest that making one food choice is safer, more sustainable or better than another food choice—especially when it’s not true.

Inquiring minds want to know when they're going to be fed.....

While things like the latest Chipotle video may be successful at attracting press, blog hits and consumer interest, the one thing they fall extremely short of achieving is creating constructive conversation about food production and the wholesome goodies on our dinner plates.

Whether it’s this latest video or others like it, it reiterates to me the importance of sharing stories about how food is really raised today. I strongly urge all producers to continue to use your voice and tell the real story of farming – right now there are consumers around the nation, and the world, putting their Google skills to the test trying to find out information about how beef, chicken and pork are produced and how livestock are treated. This is a critical component of agriculture – while we may not all agree on the what is the ‘right’ way to do things, we can all agree that no one benefits from denigrating farmers and ranchers other than the marketers and businesses themselves.

Baby beef!

Do you have pictures of you or your family caring for your livestock? Put them online with a short story about the pride you have in providing high quality care and producing safe, healthy food.  That’s the real story of farming and you should be proud of it.

When they hear the dinner bell (it's actually a siren) they come runnin'! As they pass by, we make sure everyone is present and accounted for - if not, we ride around the pasture to look for escapees or sick cattle.

Farmers and ranchers have been sharing the story of agriculture for several years and should continue to do so! Here are some great examples of producers opening up the barn doors to all who wish to view inside.

·         Anne Burkholder – a feedlot owner from Nebraska

·         Debbie Lyons-Blythe – a cow/calf rancher in the Flint Hills of Kansas

·         Ryan Goodman – a farmer from Tennessee who talks about beef, food and ranch life

·         Bridget Coon – a ranch wife in Washington who raises beef with her family

Even if you aren’t a wizard of words, you can post a picture and short sentence about your daily practices – a la Wordless Wednesday (or in my case, Semi-wordless Wednesday). Again, it is up to you to make sure that American consumers know exactly how their food is produced and that they can be confident in farmers and ranchers to do the right thing.

Podge is my role model for many things -- horsemanship, cattle care and his dedication to doing the right thing, even when it's not easy, are just a few of his outstanding qualities.

Are you a supplier to Chipotle, do you raise naturally raised beef or meet the Chipotle specs or know someone who is? PLEASE comment below – I’d love to talk with you and hear your thoughts on this!

Until next time,

~ Buzzard ~

The thoughts and opinions of this blog post strictly represent that of Brandi Buzzard Frobose and are NOT representative of any other entity or organization.

Chipotle, Hypocrites No More, To Use Antibiotic Treated Beef (Maybe)

No lie, folks. Turns out, when beef cattle numbers are at a 60-year low the niche markets that Chipotle buys from suffer too.

News hit Tuesday that Chipotle can't find enough natural beef to meet the demand for their customer base and headlines screamed that the Denver-based chain would have to use beef that has been treated with antibiotics (surprised?).

Quote from the New Jersery Star-Ledger:

For years, the eatery with nearly 120 locations in New Jersey has touted its meat as “naturally raised” and not fattened with antibiotics. But because beef production is expected to hit a 21-year low next year, about 15 percent to 20 percent of its inventory will have been treated with antibiotics to prevent illness – but not proactively to add bulk.

Allowing sick animals treated with antibiotics to remain in Chipotle’s supply chain will increase the amount of beef available to the company.

On its website, the company says “Once in awhile we do experience a shortage in certain areas of the country and we’ll let you know at the restaurants if that happens.” 

Well, that last paragraph is true - Chipotle has been sourcing conventional beef for months.

HOWEVER, apparently there was some miscommunication in burrito land because yesterday Chris Arnold, Chipotle spokesman, told NPR that the chain is considering sourcing beef raised with responsible antibiotic use but has not yet fully committed. Guess they'll just have to stick to sourcing conventional beef behind-the-scenes.

Glass half-full perspective - They have the opportunity to no longer be hypocritical.

Glass half-empty - They are still masters of the craft of misinforming consumers to make a buck.

Whether you're a Chipotle fan or not, we can all be confident that ALL American beef -- natural, organic or conventional -- is safe for consumption and is antibiotic-residue free. If you want more facts, check out this resource.

I'm still not eating there - I don't understand what the big deal is, it's just a burrito joint.

Until next time,
~ Buzzard ~

p.s. clearly, the photo above is not from Chipotle but it goes to show that a fresh, tasty burrito/taco can come from anywhere. Pork sausage tacos and garden fresh veggies at the Frobuzz ranchero. Easy peasy.

How Ronald Scratched Angus' Back

'You scratch my back and I'll scratch yours' is an adage used in many business settings today. The thought that entities could be mutually beneficial to one another has caught on quick in today's society. Just take a look at McDonald's and the Angus breed. Today I was in McDonald's for a quick burger before heading home on the train and noticed the sign for the Grand Angus burger - sounds delicious right? That's the point.

The Australian Grand Angus burger

Across the U.S. and now Australia, Angus has become the breed of cattle that society associates with hamburgers. This bodes well for both parties - McDonald's Australia experienced sales up to 400% greater than forecasts after the launch of their Angus line. In the U.S., the Angus burger accounted for a 2.2% increase in sales after the introduction of the premium burger line. On the cattle side, consumers around the world are now putting a 'face to the name' in terms of knowing where their food comes from. The Angus breed is getting a lot of face time with the new line of fancier burgers. Think about it: consumers see the Angus brand name flashed across their screen during a McDonald's commercial and hopefully their interest sparks in the beef industry. They do a little bit of fact finding to learn more about beef production, discover that farmers and ranchers take utmost pride in the care of their livestock and BAM!, a beef industry supporter is unveiled.

Think about what the impacts on other livestock industries could be if other restaurants were to brand their products with breed names. Famous Daves could introduce Berkshire Gold pulled pork sandwiches and what if Nando's marketed Dorset kebabs? Oh, the publicity those breeds would get! Instead of talking about the changing climate or the kids, commuters might be overheard "Wanna do lunch today? I've been dying to try a Berk Bun!"

Until next time,
~ Buzzard ~