Meat Your Markets By
Mack Graves
Mack Graves has worked in animal-food proteins for the past 39 years, specializing in corporate strategy, management focus and marketing effectiveness across the protein chain.
November 07, 2024 | Cake Baking with a Grandpa Veteran
October 24, 2024 | A Fish Rots From the Head Down
October 10, 2024 | Krogertsons: A Merger Bad for the Beef Industry
September 26, 2024 | Guardrails for a Boar's Head Resurrection
September 12, 2024 | Boar's Head: Tear Down This Plant!
August 29, 2024 | Went Fly Fishing, Caught No Flies
August 15, 2024 | Name Calling: Is it Effective Advertising?
August 01, 2024 | Time for the 'clean-up' bull!
July 18, 2024 | Shots Ring Out and Blood Flows — Again
June 20, 2024 | Methane: What Are We Supposed To Do About It?
June 06, 2024 | A Promise Made
May 23, 2024 | Biden vs. Trump: Future Ag Policies
May 09, 2024 | Appoint a Beef Czar/Czarina
April 25, 2024 | Kill ‘em all and let God sort ‘em out!
April 11, 2024 | Are Your Beliefs For Sale?
March 28, 2024 | A beef marketing tidbit
March 14, 2024 | Beef: It's good (not bad) for you!
February 29, 2024 | No more 'Honey, get the gate'
February 15, 2024 | Population Changes and Their Effect on Beef Production
February 01, 2024 | “Come Together, Right Now ...” – The Beatles
January 18, 2024 | Get rid of the Beef Checkoff!
January 04, 2024 | 2023: The worst of times, the best of times
December 21, 2023 | Fight or Flight Meat Marketing
December 07, 2023 | Don't label me if you want to sell me!
November 23, 2023 | Can the Meat Industry Survive the Assault on Immigrants?
November 09, 2023 | Lessons learned while walking
October 26, 2023 | It’s My Flag, it’s Your Flag
October 12, 2023 | What are we going to do NOW?!?
September 28, 2023 | Child labor’s unintended consequences
September 14, 2023 | Another new beef plant: Where will the beef go?
August 31, 2023 | Cattle Producers, Processors, Consumers and Climate Change
August 17, 2023 | Food safety: Who's responsible?
August 03, 2023 | Oligopoly in the Beef Business: What to do?
July 20, 2023 | Get ready, meat and poultry industry: The unions are coming!
July 06, 2023 | Diversity, equity and inclusion
June 22, 2023 | A shift for beef's future?
June 08, 2023 | Good judgment comes from experience, and experience comes from poor judgment
May 25, 2023 | Chicken processing at its best
May 11, 2023 | Children on the night shift? Shame on us!
April 27, 2023 | Could the meat industry be the subject of the next presidential edict?
April 13, 2023 | COOL: ChatbotGPT vs. Me
March 30, 2023 | ChatGPT: Watch Out, Here Comes AI Changing Everything!
March 16, 2023 | American Prairie vs Save the Cowboy, Episode 3.0: Conclusions & Recommendations
March 02, 2023 | Cheaters never prosper — or do they?
February 16, 2023 | American Prairie versus Save the Cowboy: Episode 2.0
February 08, 2023 | Is Controlled Atmosphere Stunning the Best We Can Do?
February 02, 2023 | American Prairie vs. Save the Cowboy: Episode 1
January 19, 2023 | Waste not, want not
January 05, 2023 | Trust is a two-way street
December 22, 2022 | “Oh, Ye of little faith?” – Matthew 6:30
December 08, 2022 | What drives cattle today — yeehaw!
November 24, 2022 | Immortalized chicken — can beef be far behind?
November 10, 2022 | Elephants making love
October 27, 2022 | American Prairie: A sustainable plan for the future?
October 13, 2022 | California’s Prop 12: Niman/Perdue agrees
September 29, 2022 | Cattle producers and beef processors: Integrate and stop marketing beef
September 15, 2022 | Beware! The Litigators are Coming! The Litigators are Coming!
September 01, 2022 | Socialism
August 18, 2022 | Robin Hood and the Inflation Reduction Act of 2022
August 04, 2022 | How old is too old?
July 21, 2022 | Food security — It’s our problem to help solve
July 07, 2022 | A bridge too far?
June 23, 2022 | No gas, no squeegee
June 09, 2022 | Integrate the beef industry?
May 26, 2022 | Don’t investigate, integrate the cattle/beef business
May 12, 2022 | Marathon parallels
April 28, 2022 | 'Water, Water everywhere, nor any drop to drink'
April 14, 2022 | Spurring a phoenix-like rise in beef demand
March 31, 2022 | Who’s greedy?
March 17, 2022 | “War, what is it good for? Absolutely nuthin’!”
March 03, 2022 | Meat prices: How high is too high?
February 17, 2022 | Racial, gender diversity: Lead, follow or get out of the way
February 03, 2022 | Auf Weidersehen, Ciao, Sayonara, Au Revoir and Goodbye, so What do you do Now?
January 20, 2022 | “Signs” — The Five Man Electrical Band
January 06, 2022 | It’s 2022. Now what?
December 23, 2021 | Has it become un-American to make a profit?
December 09, 2021 | Realism and success factors for a greenfield beef plant startup
November 25, 2021 | Thanksgiving, a day at a time
November 11, 2021 | 'Thanks for your service' — with heartfelt gratitude; 'De nada,' the vet replies
October 28, 2021 | Dreams CAN come true — if you start with the consumer
October 14, 2021 | Break up the Yankees!!
September 16, 2021 | 9/11 remembrances
September 02, 2021 | Remembering polio and the vaccine that cured it
August 19, 2021 | Can we all just get along?
August 18, 2021 | Can we all just get along?
August 05, 2021 | California does it again
July 22, 2021 | Making beef a 'best buy'
July 08, 2021 | Build more cattle slaughter capacity? You cannot be serious!
June 24, 2021 | Bitcoin and blockchain — say what?
June 10, 2021 | Have we reached an animal agriculture tipping point?
May 27, 2021 | The wrong focus for a cattle producer/farmer convention
May 13, 2021 | Is our food supply secure for the homeless?
April 29, 2021 | A proposal for beef to beat PBMs
April 15, 2021 | Beef is just dead meat!!!
April 01, 2021 | 'B-b-b-baby, you ain't seen nothin' yet' —Bachman Turner Overdrive
March 18, 2021 | Meat Outs and Ins
March 04, 2021 | Hey Bill Gates, the meat industry has a bone to pick with you
February 18, 2021 | 2020 reflections, 2021 predictions
February 04, 2021 | GM says all EV by 2035 — a herald for meat and poultry?
January 21, 2021 | 'The King is dead, long live the king'
January 07, 2021 | It’s finally over: So, what do we do now?
December 24, 2020 | “I ain’t drinking it for the taste.” — Kevin Costner in Yellowstone
December 10, 2020 | “Grease is the Word” — Barry Gibb
November 26, 2020 | Illegitimi non carborundum
November 12, 2020 | Veteran’s Day 2020: I offer my salute to all my fellow Veterans
October 29, 2020 | Election results in five days — yeah, right
October 15, 2020 | Alt-Meat: Is it all right?
October 01, 2020 | Life’s lessons learned the best way
September 17, 2020 | The West is burning; what are the solutions?
September 03, 2020 | Pull up the drawbridge, the barbarians are at the gate!
August 20, 2020 | Derecho and more, what does it all mean for family ranchers and farmers?
August 06, 2020 | NCBA’S Long Range Plan, but what about the consumer?
July 23, 2020 | How about that Burger King?
July 09, 2020 | Is your brand misunderstood?
June 25, 2020 | Cowboy justice
June 11, 2020 | Can systemic racism beget systemic leadership? Say what?
May 28, 2020 | Tastes great, but so what?
May 14, 2020 | Get ready, there’s a new normal coming
April 30, 2020 | Beef industry integration — A time whose idea has come
April 16, 2020 | Reality in our time of COVID-19
April 02, 2020 | Meat marketing during and after COVID-19
March 19, 2020 | Leadership during and after coronavirus
March 05, 2020 | Everything old is new again
February 20, 2020 | Name-calling — the newest meat marketing tactic?
February 06, 2020 | “Come together…” — The Beatles
January 23, 2020 | The demise of animal ag ... unless
January 09, 2020 | Meat industry, let’s “Ac-cent-tchu-ate the positive . . .”
December 26, 2019 | Animals as advertising spokespersons? Say it ain’t so!
December 12, 2019 | Small farms – Does our country need ‘em?
November 26, 2019 | Dean Foods bankruptcy – A bellwether for beef?
November 14, 2019 | Cosmic Crisp – a lesson for the meat industry?
October 31, 2019 | The right blend; one that meat processors should embrace
October 17, 2019 | Is global warming real? (Part III)
October 03, 2019 | Is global warming real? (Part II)
September 19, 2019 | Is global warming real? (Part 1)
August 22, 2019 | Global warming and climate change – a three part series
August 08, 2019 | Why the meat industry needs a 50-year plan
July 25, 2019 | Why or why not?
July 11, 2019 | “You’re going to ruin the beef industry!”
June 13, 2019 | “Badda book, badda boom” versus “We have the meats!”
May 30, 2019 | Marketing is no place for name-calling
May 16, 2019 | National service could be a boon for our country and the meat industry can help.
May 02, 2019 | R-CALF sues the big four; now what?
April 18, 2019 | "Hey, does that thing have a Hemi?"
April 04, 2019 | “Impossible” proteins: Should we adopt & adapt?
March 21, 2019 | Fight or flight – which is right for the meat industry?
March 07, 2019 | Segmenting meat eaters and picking the right target
February 21, 2019 | Beef’s disappearance
February 07, 2019 | Faux meat vs. real meat—not a zero sum game
January 24, 2019 | EAT Lancet – but there’s little to eat
January 10, 2019 | Antibiotic honesty
December 27, 2018 | Prime Rib guilt
December 13, 2018 | I like butter
November 29, 2018 | Juul – a meat marketing model?
November 15, 2018 | Forest fires and what the beef industry can do
October 18, 2018 | How to argue with a knife-wielding vegetarian convert
October 04, 2018 | Figures don’t lie, but liars . . . well, you know the rest
September 20, 2018 | Consumer Translation
September 06, 2018 | A crucible forges leadership
August 23, 2018 | Lead, follow or get out of the way
August 09, 2018 | Sustainable or regenerative?
July 26, 2018 | We work, but can’t eat meat
July 12, 2018 | The New Sheriff’s Tariffs
June 28, 2018 | Does our industry have an obligation to help immigrants?
June 14, 2018 | Processed versus Prepared
May 31, 2018 | Antibiotics—Here we go again!
May 17, 2018 | Follow the money – Who should contribute the most to beef promotion?
May 03, 2018 | Crispr Critters: What meat can learn from Monsanto
April 19, 2018 | A sausage fest foretells the future
April 05, 2018 | Coffee causes cancer — at least it does in California
March 22, 2018 | Can meat be considered medicine?
March 08, 2018 | What was so cool about COOL?
February 22, 2018 | Red meat industry, what are you thinking?
February 08, 2018 | $5 million for a Super Bowl ad – It better be good!
January 25, 2018 | “We Have the Meats!”™
January 11, 2018 | Is it the death knell of protein trade organizations?
December 14, 2017 | Marketing through your rearview mirror
November 30, 2017 | What farmed protein will be the world’s leader in 2025?
November 16, 2017 | McCartney’s Meatless Monday movie
November 02, 2017 | “Mmm Mmm good” — or is it?
October 19, 2017 | “Beef, it’s what’s for dinner” is back, but is that a good thing?
October 05, 2017 | I stand so others can kneel
September 21, 2017 | What the meat industry can learn from meal kits as a metaphor
September 07, 2017 | Natural Meat: An oxymoron?
August 24, 2017 | Marketing healthy: a shift in strategy
August 10, 2017 | Self-evident truths—When is meat not meat?
July 27, 2017 | The Hanoi “Hilton,”—An inspiration?
July 13, 2017 | How do we market meat to Middle America?
June 30, 2017 | Amazon/WFM – A race to the bottom; and a note on Dave Theno
June 15, 2017 | Severing past threads
June 01, 2017 | Warning: These labels may be hazardous to your company!
May 18, 2017 | Kick 'em when they're up, kick 'em when they're down
May 04, 2017 | What if they outlawed marketing?
April 20, 2017 | Meat marketing morals
April 06, 2017 | Making a case for meat—nutritionally speaking
March 23, 2017 | Big or small, trust is all
March 09, 2017 | Beef demand—where do we go from here?
February 23, 2017 | Is it all just marketing hype?
February 09, 2017 | Denied entry
January 26, 2017 | Meat’s future—where do we go from here?
January 12, 2017 | Plant-based "meat" got you down? Don't get mad; get marketing
December 29, 2016 | From hate to hope to heal
December 15, 2016 | Relationship building rules of the road
December 01, 2016 | Where have all the leaders gone?
November 17, 2016 | The king is dead; long live the king
November 03, 2016 | Tiny’s — A marketing lesson in reach and frequency
October 20, 2016 | Finding peace amidst the politics and inspiration from all of you
October 06, 2016 | Beef sandwiches for lunch at HSUS HQ
September 15, 2016 | A new grade for beef
September 01, 2016 | A lesson in failure
August 18, 2016 | Marketing gimmick or choice-provoking information?
August 04, 2016 | A child arrive
July 21, 2016 | Whose life matters most?
July 07, 2016 | Fears & hopes – meat marketing’s dream team
June 23, 2016 | Happy Birthday to me
June 09, 2016 | A niche in time
May 26, 2016 | Tobacco and meat – smoking guns?
May 12, 2016 | Local is good and mass produced is bad—or is it?
April 28, 2016 | Leadership and responsibility— handmaidens for success
April 14, 2016 | Irradiation, HPP or is it cold pasteurization?
March 31, 2016 | Getting married — again
March 17, 2016 | Demand, where’s the beef?
March 03, 2016 | Who do you trust?
February 18, 2016 | In defense of capitalism
February 04, 2016 | Consumer confusion?
January 21, 2016 | Public lands, private lives and the anti-meat movement
January 07, 2016 | Hopes, dreams and resolutions for 2016
December 24, 2015 | “So this is Christmas and what have you done?” –John Lennon
December 10, 2015 | Hubris – When we get too big for our britches
November 26, 2015 | “It’s a GIRL my lord, in a flatbed Ford…. ” – The Eagles
November 11, 2015 | A veteran’s salute – one to another
November 05, 2015 | A lesson for meat processors from Volkswagen
October 22, 2015 | Do you swear to tell the truth, the whole truth and nothing but the truth?
October 08, 2015 | Fat or Phat? Your fat, I’m fat, Wo Fat (of Hawaii Five-0 Fame)
September 24, 2015 | Chip Kelly changed football; who can change beef?
September 10, 2015 | Whose responsibility is it—mine or 165??
August 27, 2015 | The Peter Principle in Action (it’s not what you think)!
August 13, 2015 | Is sustainability marketable or is marketability sustainable?
July 30, 2015 | Red and processed meat cause cancer - Who’s kidding whom?
July 17, 2015 | Who is winning on antibiotics and branding: beef, pork or chicken?
July 02, 2015 | Don’t let the perfect become the enemy of the good
June 18, 2015 | When bad becomes normal
May 28, 2015 | Life’s purpose, death’s dignity
May 07, 2015 | “Quit yer bellyachin!”
April 23, 2015 | Should we feel guilty when we eat red meat?
April 09, 2015 | Stimulating beef demand—a summary and a call for action
March 26, 2015 | Fight ‘em fair
March 12, 2015 | Where were you, Mr. Spic & Span, when antibiotics hit the fan?
February 26, 2015 | A high tide floats all boats
February 06, 2015 | The King is dead; long live the King
January 22, 2015 | Stop squabbling
January 08, 2015 | The check(off) is in the mail
December 23, 2014 | Are your beliefs for sale?
December 11, 2014 | Einstein was right about insanity
