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How population changes are driving the beef industry

This is the first in our Spotlight on the Speakers series, featuring speakers from February’s Alberta Beef Industry Conference. This week, Andrew Ramlo, executive director of Urban Futures, spoke with us about the changing faces, places and consumption patterns of the Canadian beef market.

How age, ethnicity and lifestyles are changing the domestic market

Andrew, whose company, Urban Futures, specializes in demographics, explained that the domestic market for beef, and indeed all agricultural products, is undergoing a significant change on three major fronts:

Age: For the first time in decades, the baby boomers are no longer the dominant generation in terms of numbers. There are now more Millennials and Generation Xers than post-war boomers. This shift is having an impact on all factors of the market, including  what people consume and how they consume it.

“This younger generation demands to know where their food comes from, and how it was produced, giving rise to the popularity of niche products such as hormone-free, grass-fed and organic,” Andrew said. They are also increasingly in tune with diet and health, and this affects their food choices.

Lifestyle: “One of the major drivers of the market will be convenience,” Andrew said. “People have busy lives and kids to feed, so they need to have convenience in the ways things are prepared and packaged.”

Ethnicity: With a population that is increasingly ethnically diverse, the types of food eaten by Canadians is changing, and so is the way it is purchased and prepared. Canadian food producers must pay attention to the ethnicities of their consumers, and their eating habits or preferences.

An export market driven by growth

While the domestic market is being driven more by change than by the potential for significant growth, growth can be expected in the export market.

“The Asia-Pacific markets are going to be very significant,” said Andrew. “Particularly in China, there are a lot of consumers who have not historically eaten beef, but who are starting to be able to afford it.”

How immigration could affect beef production

We know immigration is affecting what Canadians eat, and how they prepare their food. But there is also the potential for more immigrants to be employed in the beef production industry.

“The Canadian government has increased their immigration targets from what it has historically been – between 275,000 and 300,000 – to about 340,000 by 2021,” said Andrew. “This is being done by and large in response to our aging population; to give us the ability to fill in the labour force as the baby boomers head toward retirement.”

“The government really needs to look at aspects of our labour market and do more targeted recruitment among potential immigrants.”

You can read more about the impact of demographics on the beef industry in Changing demographics mean changes at the dinner table.

Watch for future ‘Spotlight on the speakers’ posts.

Excellent reasons to attend this year’s Alberta Beef Industry Conference

On Feb 21-28, members of Alberta’s beef producing industry and their suppliers will gather at the Sheraton Red Deer Hotel, along with journalists, politicians and others interested in beef and the people who bring it to our tables.

The 15th annual Alberta Beef Industry Conference is a chance to find out what’s new, learn about the industry’s achievements and challenges, and make connections.

As always, the conference is packed with a great lineup of speakers. Here are a few highlights:

Andrew Ramlo: This strategic management consultant specializes in helping organizations develop strategies to address industry challenges and opportunities. He will be sharing his insights into everything from the changing consumption patterns of domestic and export markets, to issues of production and labour force trends.

Mark Sheridan: The president of Hester Creek Estate Winery will speak about the evolution of B.C.’s wine industry and the value the Vintners Quality Alliance has brought to wine producers in British Columbia.

John Weekes: As a senior adviser with Bennett Jones, John has worked with the National Cattle Feeders’ Association on many trade files, providing business and strategic advice. He will comment on NAFTA, Canada’s trade agreement with the United States and Mexico; the EU and the implementation of the Comprehensive Economic and Trade Agreement (CETA); efforts to bring the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) into force without the U.S.; and trade relations with China and India.

Bruce Cameron: This veteran pollster will explore the challenges our democracy faces in a world where truth is relative. Using timely examples, he will show how integrating new social media metrics with established polling techniques offers a way to reduce margins of error and restore truth in politics.

The conference promises to be packed with great information. To learn more about these and other speakers, visit the conference program page.