In the News - Where Food Comes From, Inc. and its divisions

March 2018

Canadian Cattlemen

The packer behind the pilot of a Canadian value chain for certified sustainable beef says its first three months are proof the model is scalable as well as functional.

The pilot’s first quarter “proved that a significant volume of beef can be successfully traced through a certified supply chain for the participating customers,” Gurneesh Bhandal, Cargill’s beef sustainability manager in Toronto, said in a company release Thursday.

“By adding more producers to the pilot, we can supply more customers with Canadian beef from sustainable sources.”

The project, dubbed the Canadian Beef Sustainability Acceleration (CBSA) pilot, was set up to test and validate the audit and traceability systems needed to meet the requirements of the Certified Sustainable Beef Framework laid out by the Canadian Roundtable for Sustainable Beef (CRSB).

The pilot project, which so far has taken in cattle from over 70 eligible producers, was able to “successfully” certify over 550,000 pounds of beef as per CRSB’s standards and supply chain guidelines, Cargill said.

For their first-quarter contributions, participating cattle ranchers received credit payments of $10 per head for “qualifying cattle that could be tracked through audited sustainable operations from farm to fork.”

The payments were funded by participating beef customers paying for meat delivered through an audited sustainable supply chain, Cargill said. Credit payments per head are expected to vary per quarter based on the total number of qualifying animals, participants’ beef demand and cattle weights.

BIXS, in its role as the clearing house for the pilot program, is expected to distribute the first round of credit payments to cattle producers by Monday (March 19), Cargill said.

To meet consumer demand and project goals, additional ranchers are needed to take part in the voluntary pilot program for the rest of the calendar year, the company said.

“We appreciate the enthusiasm we’ve seen and momentum that’s been generated in the first few months of the pilot,” Bhandal said, “and we are encouraged by the continued interest shown from additional cow-calf producers, feedlot operators and processing plants.”

Continued. . .

March 2018

Cargill

(Winnipeg, Canada) March 15, 2018 – The first three months of Cargill’s Canadian beef sustainability pilot project yielded encouraging results, proving the model works and demonstrating significant potential to scale the program to deliver a greater volume of certified sustainable beef to Canadian consumers. The pilot is currently encouraging additional ranchers to participate in the pilot for the remainder of 2018.

The pilot was launched to test and validate the audit and traceability systems necessary to meet the requirements of the Certified Sustainable Beef Framework established by the Canadian Roundtable for Sustainable Beef (CRSB). This framework, the first of its kind in the world, is a voluntary program that enables cattle producers and beef processors to demonstrate the sustainability of their operations while at the same time supporting the retail and food service industry in their sustainable beef sourcing efforts.

For contributions made during the first quarter of the pilot, participating cattle ranchers were rewarded $10-per-head for qualifying cattle that could be tracked through audited sustainable operations from farm to fork.

“We are encouraged by the pilot’s first quarter results. It proved that a significant volume of beef can be successfully traced through a certified supply chain for the participating customers,” said Gurneesh Bhandal, Cargill’s beef sustainability manager in Toronto. “By adding more producers to the pilot, we can supply more customers with Canadian beef from sustainable sources.”

First quarter results create momentum for remainder of 2018

During the first three months, the pilot tested and developed methodology for tracking eligible cattle through audited live animal supply chains. It also tested the methodology for tracking supply chain sustainability certifications from the beef carcass to finished products. By coupling live cattle and beef product traceability, Cargill’s Canadian customers can demonstrate the sustainability of their entire supply chain.

Verified Beef Production Plus (VBP+) – overseen by the Beef Cattle Research Council and operated with the assistance of provincial cattle organizations – is auditing cattle producers for sustainability during this pilot.

Continued. . .

December 2017

Food Safety News features Leann Saunders

Traceability discussed by Leann Saunders, COO and president of Where Food Comes From, a Denver based third-party agricultural and food verification company. featured in Food Safety News. This article is the second of a four part series.

Traceability, it’s what’s for breakfast, lunch and dinner

GMO Free. Organic. Free Range. Grass-Fed. Gluten Free. Locally Grown. Cruelty Free. Product of this state. Product of that state – as grocery shoppers continually become more consciences of the products they drop into their carts, who is responsible for backing source claims made by food companies and retailers?

“At the retail level, we go throughout the store looking at products to verify and certify certain attributes,” said Leann Saunders, COO and president of Where Food Comes From, a Denver based third-party agricultural and food verification company.

“These attributes may be ingredients within a product, non-GMO compliance or verifying claims made on an egg carton for an animal welfare standard being practiced.”

According to Saunders, verifying and creating a traceability path to products and ingredients means things to different people, defined by, “how wide and deep are you going?”

“Traceability may be within their own operation and company, or it may trace back through the supply chain,” she said.

“When I think of traceability, I think of it being more farm to fork, with identify preservation of where a product is born or grown, traced through the supply chain.”

This detailed level of traceability, which can also track ingredient products within a single commodity is complex, with technology becoming an essential tool in collecting data throughout the supply chain.

“Electronic traceability not only removes human error, but is able to keep up with commerce,” said Saunders.

“But it is not cheap, and once you commit – you are committed for long-term as it can take years and a large amount of money to make changes.”

Continued. . .

March 2017

CSU Alum win Beef Quality Assurance Award

Where Food Comes From CEO & President featured in Colorado State University “Source” news for National Beef Quality Assurance win.

When the 2017 Cattle Industry Annual Convention and National Cattleman’s Beef Association Trade Show took place last month in Nashville, Colorado State University was well-represented with a number of faculty and staff from the Department of Animal Sciences as well as several CSU alumni attending the event. In fact, two CSU alumni took away major awards with Magnum Feedyard Co., LLC, owned by Steve Gabel (BS Animal Sciences ’78) receiving the 2017 National BQA Feedyard Award and IMI Global, owned by John and Leann Saunders (BS Agricultural Business ’92 and MAGR ‘94), received the 2017 National BQA Marketer Award.

A win for Colorado’s beef industry

“This is a win for Colorado’s beef industry,” said Libby Bigler, Colorado Beef Quality Assurance program coordinator. “Both IMI Global and Magnum Feedyard are great examples CSU alumni who are leaving their mark among Colorado cattle producers who have really embraced the BQA program. Both are excellent promoters of the BQA message not only to their fellow industry members but also to the consuming public.”

First quarter results create momentum for remainder of 2018

Continued. . .

Traceability, it’s what’s for breakfast, lunch and dinner

A win for Colorado’s beef industry

© Where Food Comes From, Inc. *Recipients of the 2011 and 2015 Whole Foods Market Quality Assurance Award* *2017 Beef Quality Assurance Marketer of the Year*

© Where Food Comes From, Inc.
Recipients of the 2011 and 2015 Whole Foods Market Quality Assurance Award
2017 Beef Quality Assurance Marketer of the Year