This week I am enroute to our nation's capital Canberra to attend an event called Friends of Red Meat, hosted at Parliament House. A fabulous event where the Red Meat Advisory Council (RMAC) will bring a huge smoker into the Parliament House courtyard and serve up delicious smoked beef burgers to the Parliamentarians and their staff.
Last year's event was a huge success with more than 600 burgers consumed, in what was a wonderful showcase of delicious and nutritious Australian beef. The timing of this event proves an important opportunity to promote Australian grain fed beef to politicians, following the news last week of the Australian Dietary Guidelines being influenced by the establishment of a Sustainability Working Group.
In 2020, the Australian Government announced $2.5 million for the National Health and Medical Research Council (NHMRC) to review the 2013 Australian Dietary Guidelines. The guidelines provide the evidence base for Australia's public health and nutrition policies and practices. Their sole purpose is to support healthy food choices and eating behaviours for Australians.
NHMRC has begun the task of revising the Guidelines and has recently confirmed plans to establish a Sustainability Working Group to incorporate environmental messaging into the revised Australian Dietary Guidelines.
Through my directorship on the RMAC board, we have been actively advocating for the Australian Dietary Guidelines to be based on robust nutritional science, rather than misconceptions about sustainability. This development has RMAC and the 76,000 businesses it represents concerned that the decision to include sustainability messaging goes far beyond the intent of the Australian Dietary Guidelines to provide recommendations on healthy foods and dietary patterns.
RMAC chair John McKillop recently stated the dietary guidelines should focus on promoting public health, preventing chronic diseases and ensuring all Australians have access to accurate and reliable information about their basic nutritional requirements.
"We completely agree that sustainability considerations are important for government policy making and consumer purchasing decisions, but they should not underpin our nation's dietary recommendations," he said.
The message ALFA works hard to advocate, through the Grain Fed Beef website, is that beef is one of the best absorbable protein sources out there and these nutritional benefits should be celebrated. Not only do we produce this nutrient dense food, we have a good news story when it comes to sustainability; ensuring the highest possible animal welfare standards are maintained to ensure the cattle in our care thrive.
ALFA's vision to have all Australian feedlots shaded by 2026 is well under way, with 68 per cent of cattle on feed now having access to shade. Research projects focusing on reducing methane emissions through feed additives have been highly successful and commercial adoption is currently underway. And, for the sustainability of our industry, the investment in the long-term capabilities of our people, through the development of Feedlot TECH as the one-stop shop for practical training for all areas of the feedlot.
Grain fed beef is good for you and good for the planet. Let's all sing that message to everyone we meet.