BBQ Bootcamp, animal handling workshop planned for 2012 BHSS

PIERRE – Whether you’re a consumer wanting to hone your beef cookery skills or a livestock producer looking to enhance livestock handling and beef quality, the South Dakota Beef Industry Council (SDBIC) will help deliver with two new events at this year’s Black Hills Stock Show (BHSS) in Rapid City.

The BBQ Bootcamp is focused on turning novice cooks into seasoned backyard chefs, according to South Dakota State University (SDSU) Extension Meat Specialist Keith Underwood. Scheduled for Sunday, Jan. 29, at 1 p.m., the one-hour program is designed to educate consumers about meat cookery, barbecue and smoking, food safety and handling, meat selection, and nutrition. It is a condensed version of the popular BBQ Bootcamps held across the state in 2011.

“Each participant will be provided recipes and a meat thermometer,” said Underwood. “The program will allow participants to sample the products that were prepared and discussed during the program.”

Held at the Kjerstad Event Center west entrance, the free event is funded by the SDBIC and presented by SDSU Extension and the SDSU Department of Animal Science.

“The BBQ Bootcamp will not only teach consumers about food safety, but also introduce some of the beef industry’s new value-added cuts,” said SDBIC Executive Director Ron Frederick. “These new cuts come out of the round and shoulder and are economical beef selections that help stretch a consumer’s food dollar while providing excellent taste and tenderness.”

He adds that checkoff-funded research was instrumental in helping develop these value cuts that include the Flat Iron, Ranch Steak, and Petite Tender. For more information about BBQ Bootcamp, contact Underwood at 605-688-5439, or keith.underwood@sdstate.edu.

For producers of beef, SDBIC, along with SDSU and the South Dakota Department of Agriculture, are teaming up on Saturday, Jan. 28 to provide the latest information in cattle handling and welfare practices. The Animal Handling and Welfare Workshop will provide both an opportunity to learn more about the South Dakota Certified Beef program and better understand consumer concerns in livestock handling and welfare. Attending the event will also qualify producers to be Beef Quality Assurance (BQA) Level I-certified.

The Animal Handling and Welfare Workshop will be held at the Plaza Clubhouse Suite on the east entrance to the Ice Arena in the Rushmore Plaza Civic Center. It will run from 10 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. with refreshments and snacks provided. For more information or to register for the workshop contact Tracey Orsburn, SDBIC Director of Industry Relations, at 605-224-4722, or torsburn@sdbeef.org.

Both the BBQ Bootcamp and Animal Handling and Welfare Workshop are beef checkoff-funded events.

– SDBIC