By CELESTE BAUMGARTNER
Ohio Correspondent

OXFORD, Ohio — The deadline for voting on the second American Lamb Board referendum is Feb. 27.

That board develops and implements programs which build demand for American lamb, said Megan Wortman, executive director of the American Lamb Board.

The Lamb Checkoff assessment began on July 1, 2002. Nick Forrest looked at the value of that assessment from under two hats; as a lamb producer and as a member of the American Lamb Board.

“With my producer hat on I think it (the checkoff) is a great opportunity for producers throughout the United States,” Forrest said. “Ten years ago when you opened a ‘foodie’ magazine you rarely saw any lamb recipes or anything on TV, the cooking network.”

Lamb consumption is on the rise, Forrest said. Ten years ago consumption was under 1 percent. “Even catfish was above us,” Forrest said. That has changed.


The cooking network, cooking magazines, restaurants – especially white tablecloth restaurants – are using more lamb recipes, Forrest said.

“More chefs are incorporating this great product, American lamb, into their menu. It is raised regionally and they can get fresh product and have a great dish for the consumer.”

Wortman agreed with Forrest’s assessments.

“Over the course of the last five years that we’ve been at it we have seen a bump in demand, 5.7 percent over the last ten years and it had been on a declining curve,” Wortman said.

Wearing his board-member hat Forrest said the checkoff was a great opportunity because it had gotten the most value from the dollar Forrest said.

Wortman agreed: “We’re charged with measuring the return on the investment for our contributors at least every five years. We have decided to do that annually.”

The latest study that showed that the lamb board’s promotion programs have generated roughly eight additional pounds of total lamb consumption per dollar spent on our advertising and promotion, she said.

Branding the product as “American lamb” instead of just “lamb” was a great tool, Forrest said.

When the checkoff came into play in 2002 there was a trend for domestic production and consumption to be declining, Wortman said. Imports had made great inroads into the market.

“We now share this market about 50-50,” Wortman said. “I think we’ve been able to establish the different quality of American lamb over imported where before shops and the media and consumers weren’t aware that there was a difference in the marketplace.”
If the referendum passes, because of the shift in the economy, the board may need to change its strategy, Wortman said. Currently about 50 percent of the funds are spent on food service and 50 percent on consumer retail.

While the board sees great value in the dollars spent on food service, post referendum, those funds will be weighted more towards a consumer awareness campaign.

Finally, the board has a great deal of oversight by USDA.
“That’s only going to increase,” Wortman said. “We’re looking at USDA coming in annually and doing audits to make sure we can tie back every dollar spent to policies and approved plans and contracts.”

Anyone who was engaged in the production, feeding, exportation, or slaughter of lambs (sheep) from Jan. 1, 2008 through Dec. 31, 2008, is eligible to vote. The vote will be conducted at the local county USDA Farm Service Agency (FSA) offices.