The recently released Dietary Guidelines for Americans contained some good news for U.S. livestock producers, especially beef. Dr. Shalene McNeil, executive director of nutrition, science, health, and wellness for the National Cattlemen’s Beef Association, was excited by the new Guidelines.
“I was actually excited to see them, because I think they reaffirm the science on beef that not only the Beef Checkoff has invested in, but that other scientists have conducted over the past several decades, which really shows that beef can be included in a healthy dietary pattern, and I think these new dietary guidelines reflect that research.”
She talked about what changed with these new Guidelines.
“A lot of the dietitian community is really debating this. I’ve been seeing and watching this, and there’s a lot about the dietary guidelines that are the same. We’re still recommending more fruits and vegetables. We’re still talking about eating portions that help you maintain a healthy weight. We’re still talking about eating a variety of foods. What’s really different, though, when we look at it from a beef lens and a beef producer lens, maybe, is that we’ve never seen dietary guidelines that have placed such importance on high-quality proteins, like beef.”
Protein was clearly a priority with these new Dietary Guidelines.
“They’ve actually recommended more dietary protein than the past committees have recommended, so that’s a big change. And then we’ve seen more positive language about the inclusion of real Whole Foods, including animal foods like beef, in healthy diets. We’ve seen recognition of beef’s healthy fats as well. So, a lot of the positive attributes of beef that we haven’t seen highlighted in past guidelines are now highlighted in these new dietary guidelines.”