The National Cattlemen’s Beef Association (NCBA) is disappointed by some of the changes that are proposed by an advisory committee that are crafting the “Scientific Report of the 2025 Dietary Guidelines Advisory Committee” report for the years 2025 through 2030.
Janet DeJesus with the U. S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) says one suggestion is moving beans, peas and lentils from being a subgroup of the vegetable category, to being a subgroup of the protein category, to align with a current global trend of supporting more plant-based sources of protein.
“One of them is to consume more protein that come from vegetable sources. They recommended we increase the protein recommendations slightly to come from beans, peas and lentils which is a vegetable-based protein and slightly decrease animal-based proteins.”
National Cattlemen’s Beef Association president Mark Eisele calls the trend towards eating more plant-based proteins terrible.
“We work with an outstanding group of dietitians and meat scientists and they make sure that those little guidelines really are adequate so we’re working to push against that we want to make sure we have a voice for school lunches, Department of Defense, and the dietary guidelines, that includes beef as a good nutritious protein.”
Eisele says cutting back on beef consumption won’t make Americans healthy again.
“It’s not really addressing concerns and I think it would head off a lot of childhood diseases in addition to adult problems that we have. I just read a fascinating story that almost half of India is diabetic and that’s why? Because they don’t eat meat. They don’t eat beef. So it’s obviously not working.”
The report also recommends reorganizing the order of the protein foods group. It suggests putting beans, peas, and lentils first, nuts, seeds, and soy products second, seafood third, and meat and poultry and eggs last.
NCBA will be submitting comments to the Federal Agriculture Department and to the Health and Human Services Department, and Eisele is encouraging cattle producers to do the same.
I’m Lori Boyer reporting for AgNet West.