FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

May 2010 – The Beef Information Centre (BIC) is partnering with Arby’s Canada to communicate positive nutrition messaging about Canadian beef.

Arby’s is a national quick-service restaurant chain with a focus on fresh roast beef sandwiches. This promotion runs May through June at 120 locations across Canada.

“Arby’s was looking for opportunities to differentiate themselves from competing quick-service restaurant chains,” says Judy Nelson, BIC chair and a cow-calf producer at Lundbreck, Alta. “BIC was able to provide consumer research and marketing insights that led to the positioning of their Roast Beef Sandwich with a health and nutrition message, one of the few restaurant chains in Canada to use this approach.”

As part of BIC’s multimedia campaign launched in March, Arby’s promotion features the Canadian beef brand mark on in-store promotional materials, including the tagline ‘Goodness in Every Bite’. Canadian beef nutritional messaging also appears on promotional materials, including ‘delicious and nutritious as part of a balanced diet’.

Positive consumer nutritional messaging isn’t typically used at quick-service restaurants. According to Nelson, Arby’s recognized that including information that Canadian beef is part of a nutritious diet is truly a unique and compelling message for consumers.

“This is a tremendous opportunity both for Arby’s and for Canadian beef,” says Nelson. “We know consumers are looking for ways to make healthy choices when eating out, and the nutritional messaging that Arby’s is using highlights that beef can be part of balanced diet, aligning beef with other perceived healthy choices at restaurants.”

BIC’s efforts to maximize demand for Canadian beef and optimize the value of Canadian beef products is funded in part by cattle producers through the National Beef Check-Off, and through beef industry market development funds provided by the Government of Alberta and the Government of Canada.

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For more information, please contact:
Janet Kanters
Stakeholder Communications Manager
Beef Information Centre
jkanters@beefinfo.org
Tel: 403-275-5890, ext 310