New Meat Labeling System Unveiled
The .meat industry has an
nounced a new standardized
identification-labeling program
designed to reduce shopper
confusion and help consumers
make wiser, more economical
buying decisions.
The National Live Stock and
Meat Board, an industry
association, coordinated the
voluntary 16-month meat trade
project. President David H.
Stroud of the Meat Board told a
press conference that “the new
nationwide system may be the
most significant meat counter
improvement since the in
troduction of self-service nearly
four decades ago.”
The new program promises
benefits for the marketer as well
as the consumer, Stroud said.
The names for various cuts of
beef, pork and lamb sold in U. S.
food stores have been reduced
from more than 1,000 to about 300.
Basically, the meat industry’s
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new system of uniform labeling
means a Beef Rib Eye Steak is a
Beef Rib Eye Steak - - not a
’Delmonico steak’ at one place, a
’Fillet steak’ someplace else, or a
’Spencer steak’ or ’Beauty steak’
in still other stores, depending on
where you live in the U. S. - - or
even where you shop in the same
city.
According to the Meat Board,
51-year-old meat industry
authority, each cut is labeled by a
uniform method. The label will
show, first, the species of meat
(beef, veal, pork, lamb); second
the primal area (or so-called
wholesale cut) from which the
retail cut was derived - - breast
(brisket), shoulder (chuck) arm,
shoulder (chuck) blade, rib, loin,
sirloin (hip) and leg (round) - -
and finally, the recommended
retail name. Thus in the example
cited above, you would have the
species, “Beef”; the primal cut,
“Rib”; and the recommended
retail name “Eye Steak” - - with
the label reading;
BEEF RIB
EYE STEAK
“While the primary purpose of
this program is to reduce the
confusing variety of names that
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Serving all of Lancaster and Lebanon County
confront meat shoppers in dif
ferent stores, there are instances
where complete elimination of
previously familiar names might
actually add to customer con
fusion,” said H. Kenneth John
son, Meat Board Merchandising
Director. “There are a number of
names which have become ac
cepted through localized
tradition or which have been
customized for individual store or
chain identity .. . but which are
not widely enough used
throughout the country to become
the standard identification.”
For instance, when a retailer in
New England adopts the
program and discovers his ever
popular “California Roast”
should be labeled by another
name, he can use both names.
The correct consumer iden
tification would appear on the
regular price-weight label:
BEEF CHUCK
UNDER BLADE ROAST
Then, if he wants, he can add
“California Roast” to the label or
on a separate sticker to call
customer attention to the cut’s
old name.
By adding the locally familiar
name to the newly-adopted
standard name, the retailer can
assure his customers he’s still
handling the same quality and
variety of cuts that he always did
- - but with a more definitive
system of identification from now
on, Johnson noted.
In developing this meat
identity program, any name
other than an accepted generic
anatomical label was considered
a “fanciful” name and, with a
few exceptions, these are not
recommended for use on the
label.
“Such handles as ‘Patio Roast,’
‘Pop-up Steak,’ ‘Paradise Roast,’
‘Chuckwagon Cut,’ ‘Smoked
Callie,’ ‘Ranch Bacon,’ ‘London
Broil’ and ‘His-and-Her Steaks’
have been the root of meat
counter confusion and are ex
cluded from the recommended
list,” said Johnson. “Not only are
such names not definitive, but in
some instances, the same name
is used to label different cuts of
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meat in different parts of the
country - - which is extremely
frustrating to people who move
from one section of the nation to
another.
“We’ve even been accused of
deliberately deceiving unwary
consumers,” Johnson said. “I
suppose there’s been some of
that, but it was minimal, I’m
certain. In any event, it’s now to
be eliminated.”
There are a few exceptions to
the rule, however, where some
names, while not anatomical, are
so widely accepted that they are
traditional here and abroad. Thus
you will continue to find “Por
terhouse Steak,” and “Filet
Mignon” in the beef category,
“Butterfly Loin Chops” among
the pork cuts and “French-style
Chops” in the lamb counter.
Fanciful, strictly regional or
potentially misleading names
have been replaced by others
with more specific meaning to
the average shopper. The
program also includes
descriptive labels, informative
point-of-purchase materials, and
special booklets for distribution
through retail meat outlets.
Joining Stroud in the meat
identity program kick-off
presentation were Harry
Beckner, President, Jewel Food
Stores, Melrose Park, 111.; J. W.
(Pete) Reece, Meat Mer
chandising and Procurement
Director of the Fleming Com
pany, Tojieka, Kansas: Ken
Fedor, Administrator, Office of
Food, Cost of Living Council,
Washington, D. C.; H. Kenneth
Johnson, Meat Board Mer
chandising Director and Reba
Staggs, Meat Board Home
Economics Director.
The master list now becomes
an official name guide for
universal adoption by meat
retailers.
Among other consumer
benefits expected from the new
system is a guarantee that such
vaguely named or misnamed
meat cuts as “Paradise Roast”
will be happily lost - - but not
lamented - - to consumer view.
The distillation of meat cut
names was achieved by an In
dustry-wide Cooperative Meat
Identification Standards Com
mittee, of which Mr. Reece is
Chairman. The group is made up
of executives of retail and meat
packing-processing companies
and their industry trade
organizations, with assistance
from the U. S. Dept, of
Agriculture, White House Office
for Consumer Affairs and the
Council of Better Business
Bureaus.
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I—New Holland model 350 Grinder Mixer
I—Smoker 24 ft. Elevator
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I—l. H. 550 - 5 Furrow Trip Plow
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I—4 Furrow Allis Automatic Reset Plow
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1— D-14 Allis Chalmers Tractor
2 Haybines (waiver of finance)
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USED TRUCKS
I—lnternational 1964 Scout
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Today’s Meat Board an
nouncement was timed to the
publication of the new Uniform
Retail Meat Identity Standards
Manual and supporting materials
for retail food outlets throughout
the country. The manual includes
the illustrated master list of
recommended names plus other
chapters dealing with sHopper
concern and retail selling
practices.
According to Stroud, par
ticipating retailers are in the
process of phasing out the often
confusing array of names by
which many meats are called.
“The name list seemed endless,”
Stroud said. “It has proliferated
to awesome proportions, par
ticularly since the end of World
War 11. The merchandising
ingenuity of the extremely
competitive meat retailing
business is partly responsible.
“But once this new system gets
into full operation, each cut will
carry the same name wherever
you buy it in the country.”
The Standards Committee
spent more than a year preparing
the master list of uniform meat
cut names. Committee members
represent large and small in
dependent and chain grocery and
packer-processor operations of
wide geographic distribution.
They combed through more than
1,000 commonly used names to
determine which single name
best suited each of the roughly
300 cuts sold in the nation’s food
stores. (The list of fresh cuts of
beef, veal, pork and lamb does
not include the more than 250
varieties of sausage also
available.)
Not only will the names on the
meat package labels be uniform
throughout the U. S., but most
stores participating in the
program will display illustrated
identification charts, plus other
descriptive material on the new
meat labeling system. The charts
show the carcass, primal cuts
and location and names of most
retail cuts, along with cookery
recommendations.
What about the stores which do
not join the program?
“We’ve tried to reach them all
with information on the program
and its benefits both to the con
sumer and retailer,” answered
Stroud. “But it’s a huge industry.
We’ve probably missed some - -
but they’ll learn about it either
from us or from their customers.
As I said, it’s a highly com
petitive industry. It’s unlikely
that many firms will consciously
give a merchandising edge to the
competition in the area of
customer good will.”
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