I had the chance in September to attend the Certified Angus Beef Annual Conference in Asheville, N.C. The conference brings together all aspects of the beef industry, including producers, processors, retailers, foodservice operators and distributors. Along with the education seminars and the new products showcase, one of the real highlights was the welcoming reception, where chefs from across the country prepared a welcoming feast for attendees.
When it comes to the foodservice world, there are two separate types. On one hand, you have the restaurant chains, where menus are designed around uniformity. If you go to a Chili’s in California and one in Florida, the expectation is that the food would taste the same. At the other end of the spectrum, you have the individually owned restaurants, where the menu is left to the creativity of the chef. The meat industry depends on both of these types of restaurants, but the types of products they will offer could be very different indeed.