Montana Beef Council

What Montana Beef Council does

Montana Beef Council is a private, non-profit state marketing organization founded on August 8, 1954, and headquartered in Billings, Montana. It operates as one of 44 qualified State Beef Councils under the federal Beef Promotion and Research Order, with its 12-member board of directors appointed by 12 Montana agricultural membership organizations including the Montana Stockgrowers Association, Montana Cattlemen's Association, Montana CattleWomen, Montana Farm Bureau Federation, Montana Farmers Union, and Montana Angus Association, among others. The organization is led by a five-person staff: Chaley Harney (Executive Director), Sue Broyles (Business Manager), Tammy Bridges (Director of Collections & Compliance), Al Koenig (Field Representative), and Anna Sponheim (Project Manager).

The Council's core activity is collecting and deploying the federally mandated Beef Checkoff assessment of $1 per head on all cattle marketed in Montana. Of each dollar, 50 cents is retained for in-state programs and 50 cents is forwarded to the national Cattlemen's Beef Board. Retained funds are deployed across a portfolio of demand-building, education, and quality-assurance programs, including the Montana Beef Directory (a searchable online directory of 100+ state producers offering direct-to-consumer beef sales), the School Foodservice Beef Resource Guide, the Cowboy in the Kitchen video series, the Team Beef Montana athlete ambassador program (85 athletes, race reimbursement capped at $150/year), Beef Quality Assurance certification (linked to a documented $16.80/head premium per Colorado State University research), K-12 classroom resources, monthly Beef Bites newsletter, and an annual Project Funding grant program for external partners. Annual program reach includes 6,230 students, 196,000 weekly Facebook impressions during football season, 165 grocery store meat-case displays, 93,300 head of cattle under BQA practices, and 170 media-trained agriculture students.

The Council operates under a community-led, event-driven go-to-market model rather than selling products or services commercially. Its revenue mechanics are a legislated transaction fee (mandatory assessment) on cattle sales, not voluntary payments. The underlying technology is conventional digital (website, email newsletter, social media on Facebook and Instagram), with integration into national BQA certification databases and the Beef. It's What's For Dinner. consumer brand. Key partnerships span the national Cattlemen's Beef Board, the U.S. Meat Export Federation for international markets, Montana FFA, the Montana Meat Processors Association, and multiple livestock and farm organizations. The operating geography is primarily Montana with national coordination and limited international promotion via USMEF.

Name

Montana Beef Council

Legal name

Montana Beef Council

Website

https://montanabeefcouncil.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

1954

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

Montana Beef Council is a non-profit state marketing organization, founded 1954 and headquartered in Billings, that collects a federally mandated $1 per head Beef Checkoff assessment on Montana cattle sales to fund beef promotion, education, research, and producer programs statewide.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Agricultural Marketing and Beef Promotion Services

NAICS

Support Activities for Animal Production (1152)

SIC

Agricultural Services (700)

akta.pro primary industry

Advocacy, Policy & Public Awareness (Animal Welfare) (BPAGAIAJ)

akta.pro secondary industries

Animal Welfare, Handling & Stockmanship Audits/Training (AFACADAL), Animal Welfare & Advocacy Organizations (AFAEALAC)

Keywords

• Beef promotion
• Checkoff program
• Beef marketing
• Cattle producer services
• Agricultural education

Headquarters

HQ city

Billings

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Marketing or Sales, Operations, Others

Revenue model

1. Beef Checkoff Collection: The Montana Beef Council collects $1 per head mandatory assessment on all cattle sold in Montana. Half of each dollar is retained for state-level beef promotion programs, with the other half forwarded to the national Cattlemen's Beef Board. This is a legislated mandatory fee, not a voluntary revenue stream.

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels9 records

Core offering

Montana Beef Council is a state beef marketing organization that collects and administers the mandatory $1 per head Beef Checkoff assessment on cattle sales in Montana. It invests these funds into consumer beef promotion, producer education, research, and market development programs designed to increase demand for Montana beef. Core offerings include the Montana Beef Directory, Beef Quality Assurance certification, Team Beef Montana athletics program, school foodservice resources, and various consumer education campaigns.

Product overview

Montana Beef Council operates as a marketing organization for the Montana beef industry, offering a portfolio of consumer-facing programs and producer resources. The core offerings include the Montana Beef Directory (a searchable producer database), the School Foodservice Beef Resource Guide (institutional meal planning resources), the Cowboy in the Kitchen video cooking series, and the Team Beef Montana community athletics program. Additional services include the Beef Quality Assurance certification program for producers, Classroom Resources for K-12 education, Beef Nutrition Education materials, the monthly Beef Bites Newsletter, a Project Funding Program for industry initiatives, and Beef Checkoff Collection Services. These products collectively serve to promote beef consumption, support Montana cattle producers, and educate consumers about beef nutrition and production.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Team Beef Montana: A community of beef-loving fitness enthusiasts supported by Montana Beef Council, consisting of runners, triathletes and health enthusiasts who promote beef and healthy lifestyles at races and events.
• Montana Beef Directory

Products and services

• Montana Beef Directory

Quantifiable outcome

• BQA certification commands $16.80 per head premium according to Colorado State University study
• +4 more outcomes

Named customers3 records

Segments5 records

Ideal customer profiles5 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

Twelve partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• Cattlemen's Beef BoardcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerNational oversight board for the Beef Checkoff Program. Montana Beef Council forwards 50 cents per head of the $1 checkoff to the Cattlemen's Beef Board, which coordinates national beef promotion, research, and marketing programs.
• Beef. It's What's For Dinner.coreGTM or Marketing PartnerNational beef marketing campaign brand providing consumer advertising, recipes, cooking resources, nutrition information, and retail/foodservice support. Montana Beef Council aligns with this national brand for consumer marketing efforts.
• USMEF (U.S. Meat Export Federation)minorStrategic or Co-development PartnerInternational beef marketing partner. Montana Beef Council participates in international beef promotion through USMEF to reach the 96% of world's population living outside the U.S.
• Montana Meat Processors AssociationcoreGTM or Marketing PartnerJoint partnership for Beef Box Giveaway contest awarding $50 worth of beef and beef products to winners drawn twice monthly. Montana Meat Processors Association members fulfill prize distribution to winners.
• Montana BBQ Cook-off / Nick MorrisonminorGTM or Marketing PartnerAnnual barbecue competition event attracting 4,000+ visitors. Beef checkoff dollars support the cook-off to showcase beef brisket and attract competitors from across the nation.
• Montana FFAminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartnership for BQA contest for Montana agriculture students. Montana Beef Council sponsors the contest where top schools win $500 and second place receives $250 for their FFA chapters.
• Montana Stockgrowers AssociationcoreOthersOne of 12 member organizations that appoint representatives to the Montana Beef Council Board of Directors according to council bylaws.
• Montana Cattlemen's AssociationcoreOthersOne of 12 member organizations that appoint representatives to the Montana Beef Council Board of Directors.
• Montana CattleWomencoreOthersOne of 12 member organizations that appoint representatives to the Montana Beef Council Board of Directors.
• Montana Angus AssociationcoreOthersOne of 12 member organizations that appoint representatives to the Montana Beef Council Board of Directors.
• Montana Farm Bureau FederationcoreOthersOne of 12 member organizations that appoint representatives to the Montana Beef Council Board of Directors.
• Montana Farmers UnioncoreOthersOne of 12 member organizations that appoint representatives to the Montana Beef Council Board of Directors.

Scale indicators10 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• Nebraska Beef Council: Nebraska Beef Council is a leading state beef council with significant cattle industry concentration. It operates under identical checkoff funding mechanics and executes comparable programs (BQA, consumer marketing, producer education), making it a close functional peer for benchmarking program scale and effectiveness.
• Texas Beef Council: Texas Beef Council is another state-level Beef Checkoff organization under the same Beef Promotion and Research Order, with materially larger cattle herd volumes and program budgets. It executes the same producer-funded marketing, education, and BQA programs as MBC, making it the most direct structural and operational comparable.
• Kansas Beef Council: Kansas Beef Council is a state-level beef promotion organization with similar checkoff-funded structure to MBC. Both councils prioritize consumer education, BQA training, and producer communications, with overlapping marketing channels and partner ecosystems through the Cattlemen's Beef Board.
• Iowa Beef Industry Council: Iowa Beef Industry Council operates under the same Beef Promotion and Research Order as MBC, administering state-level checkoff programs. Its mix of producer services, consumer marketing, and foodservice education closely mirrors MBC's portfolio, providing a useful peer for comparison on program mix and ROI.
• Wyoming Beef Council: Wyoming Beef Council is a neighboring state council with comparable cattle industry dynamics to Montana. As a regional peer, it faces similar challenges around geographic dispersion, herd-based funding, and rural consumer markets, making it a relevant comparison for program design and execution.
• United Soybean Board: United Soybean Board is a national commodity checkoff organization administering producer-funded marketing and research programs under a similar federal mandate structure. It provides a cross-commodity benchmark for checkoff-funded demand-building effectiveness and program governance.
• National Pork Board: National Pork Board is a parallel commodity checkoff organization funded by mandatory per-head assessments on hog sales. It executes the same producer-funded promotion, research, and education model as MBC for a different protein, making it a structural peer for understanding checkoff governance and program ROI.
• Colorado Beef Council: Colorado Beef Council is a regional state council under the same national checkoff structure as MBC. It executes comparable BQA, consumer marketing, and producer communications programs, and shares Montana's Rocky Mountain regional context for agricultural promotion.

Broad incumbents

• National Cattlemen's Beef Association: NCBA is the national trade association representing the U.S. cattle industry, operating the Federation of State Beef Councils. As a broader industry incumbent, it handles policy, lobbying, and checkoff program execution — partially overlapping with MBC's producer-services mission at the national level.
• Cattlemen's Beef Board: Cattlemen's Beef Board is the national oversight body that receives 50 cents of every $1 checkoff dollar and coordinates national beef promotion, research, and marketing. It is the upstream governing entity that defines MBC's funding rules, programmatic priorities, and compliance framework.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights5 records

Customer concentration

• Facebookfacebook.com/MontanaBeefCouncil
• Instagraminstagram.com/montanalovesbeef
• Xx.com/mtbeefcouncil
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/montana-beef-council

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles7 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

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M&A

Investments

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Frequently asked questions about Montana Beef Council