MERRITT, B.C. — Living next to an elephant influences every action on Cherie Copithorne-Barnes’ ranch west of Calgary.
“Living 20 miles from a million people and the Trans-Canada going by to the tune of 100,000 cars on the weekend, I am under the magnifying glass all the time. It doesn’t matter if it is animals or the environment,” she said.
The other elephant pressuring ranchers is the corporate world questioning what is going on within the beef production sector.
Copithorne-Barnes chairs the Canadian round table for sustainable beef, which is charged with de-veloping a verified sustainable beef scheme that is environmentally sound, socially responsible and economically viable.
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A single and aligned check-off collection system based on where producers live makes the system equal said Chad Ross, Saskatchewan Cattle Association chair.
“In theory it sounds really simple, but there are 1,000 different ways to define how you or I can become environmentally or economically sound,” she said at the British Columbia Cattlemen’s Association annual meeting held in Merritt from May 21-23.
The round table’s 40 members include representatives from beef organizations, processors, retailers and non-governmental organizations such as the World Wildlife Fund.
Part of their task is a McDonald’s Canada project to create a sustainable beef program. A major part is validating what is done on the farm.
“All of us ranchers have that intrinsic understanding of the environment, but do we really know how to measure?” she said.
Pilot projects with 37 indicators of sustainability are underway to test the program.
“We will be able to come up with what a sustainable beef platform will look like very shortly,” she said.
A 70-member sustainability consortium is developing a list of what it expects from suppliers. Members include corporations like Walmart, Campbell’s, Coca Cola, General Mills and Kelloggs.
Copithorne-Barnes described the group as well intentioned, but its main flaw is that no producers were invited to join.
Major beef producing countries such as Brazil, New Zealand and Ireland are also building sustain-ability frameworks.
“I hope we are the first to say we have sustainable beef here in Canada,” she said.
