#BetterWithBeef campaign kickoff invites governor over for a burger

Colorado’s beef industry, stung by comments Gov. Jared Polis made about promoting plant-based burgers, is fighting back with a campaign to educate Coloradans, and Polis, about the value of Colorado’s beef industry.

On Wednesday, Sept. 4, the Colorado Cattlemen’s Association, joined by the Colorado Livestock Association and cattle ranchers from Morgan and Yuma counties, launched the “#BetterWithBeef” campaign at the National Western complex in Denver.

The event included a barbecue, complete with 100% Colorado-grown beef burgers, supplied by the Blach family of Yuma (Tom, Justin, Jeremy and future farmer Austin, and in-law Danny Robertson).

Also joining the event: former Commissioners of Ag Don Ament of Iliff and Don Brown of Yuma and state Sens. Jerry Sonnenberg of Sterling and Don Coram of Montrose, all cattle producers, along with a half dozen shiny livestock trucks and other vehicles carrying banners that said “Better With Beef” or “Beef. Impossible to Imitate.”

The governor was there, too.

Polis was invited to the campaign kickoff and talked about the controversy over the Impossible Burger. In August, he visited the staff of the state Department of Agriculture and encouraged them to “go meatless,” a comment that “mortified” the staff, according to the Fence Post.

Beef is Colorado’s No. 1 agricultural export, bringing in about $4 billion out of the state’s $40 billion economic impact from agriculture.

Polis is not a vegetarian, but his partner, Marlon Reis, is a vegan and animal rights activist.

Ament told the crowd gathered for the campaign kickoff that he worries about how people are getting information about the food they eat. Farmers and ranchers make up just 1% of the population, he said. “Cattle is the big deal” in Colorado as the state’s top ag export. The cattle story in Colorado also includes dairy cows, and the corn and hay that feed the cattle.

And all of this is done for fair prices, he indicated. “You get to eat for less than 7% of your disposable income.”

Sonnenberg thanked those who trucked down from northeast Colorado to Denver. “You’re like me, you’d rather be on the back of a horse,” he said. He noted that in his state Senate district, which covers most of the Eastern Plains, there are 10 times more cattle than people.

And demand for Colorado beef is growing, both in the United States and worldwide, he said. That’s because people like the value and the taste of beef.

Ranchers are also good stewards of the land, he explained. “We love our animals, and we love the environment,” and do whatever they can to leave the environment better this year than the last.

This is not a partisan issue, Sonnenberg added. “This is a conversation about agriculture and what we provide as the second largest industry in the state. ... This industry is our livelihood. It’s important to Colorado and to the entire country.”

Polis, in his comments before heading off to the grill for a burger, said that the state is attracting food and agricultural businesses that will help preserve the Colorado way of life for small business. “I want to be sure that farmers and ranchers are not just a storied part of Colorado but part of Colorado’s future.”

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