COLUMBUS, Ohio – Drought conditions and high feed costs prompted the USDA’s forecast of a production drop of 1.5 billion pounds for beef in 2023. The 5.5 percent decline – the first since 2015 – has state beef councils looking for initiatives to increase the consumer demand for beef.

As a result, the Ohio Beef Council is debuting a marketing program offering consumers the opportunity to enjoy a variety of beef dining options in Ohio restaurants. The Eat Beef Ohio Passport program began May 1, 2023, and runs through the end of September.

The Passport, funded through the Beef Checkoff program, encourages consumers to visit participating restaurants and order all sorts of beef fares with the chance to earn points for prizes. A check-in at each location also gives pass holders a chance to be entered to win a Pit Boss 700FB Wood Pellet Grill.

Ohio’s beef cattle industry is a significant segment of the state’s economy. With 17,733 beef farms, Ohio ranks 12th nationally. In addition, the state’s 302,000 beef cattle produce $1.7 million pounds of beef annually. Ohioans spend $4.3 billion annually on beef.

“Ohio’s cattle farmers take great pride in the beef they raise. We think the change of seasons is a great time to kick off this statewide celebration of beef,” said Ohio Beef Council Chairman Erin Stickel “We look forward to sharing great beef-eating experiences with all of Ohio.”

According to the Cattlemen’s Beef Board, the Beef Checkoff program was established as part of the 1985 Farm Bill. It was designed to stimulate restaurants and grocery stores to sell more beef and encourage consumers to buy more beef.

Currently, 15 restaurants are part of the first-year initiative. Most of the establishments surround Cleveland, Columbus and Cincinnati. However, a few sites are in Cambridge, Bellefontaine and Urbana.

Kelly Keirn, Ohio Beef Council manager of consumer programs and digital marketing, is responsible for developing the partnerships necessary to launch this program. Keirn single-handedly continues to add restaurants to the list through e-mail blasts for social ads, and press releases for restaurants calling, emailing, and going to like locations.

“We are looking for more and restaurants can apply to participate,” Keirn said. “We also have lots of people signing up to get their passports and to go out and try these locations.”

Participating restaurants may be found at www.ohiobeef.org/eatbeefohio/restaurants.

The passport program began in Nebraska and has spread to six other states. “Nebraska started this, and they’re in their third year with this passport program,” Keirn said. “They brought this idea to the table for all the state beef councils to participate in. It’s just really a great way to promote beef, connect with our consumers, and also can connect with our local restaurants here in Ohio.”

The Eat Beef Ohio Passport is free, and consumers can visit www.ohiobeef.org/eatbeefohio to sign up for their passport by providing their name, email address, and mobile phone number. A link will be sent to their phone, which opens the passport and directs the user to save the button icon to their home screen, where they can access it at any time.

The ease of the passport ensures that there is never anything to download and no bulky apps on the user’s phone, while simply tracking your great beef-eating experiences. Once you are ready to redeem your pass, simply open the button icon and earn a stamp at a participating restaurant.

Restaurants wishing to be a part of the pass can click the submit application button on www.ohiobeef.org/eatbeefohio or call Keirn, 614-873-6736.