LINCOLN, Neb. (KMTV) — United States Secretary of Agriculture Sonny Perdue, along with Congressman Jeff Fortenberry and others, got a tour of a new farming facility Friday, with a focus on how to bring healthier food options to consumers.
"Beef has kind of gotten a bad rap in recent years about maybe not being the healthiest protein choice," said Shane Peed, co-owner of Certified Piedmontese Beef.
Peed is trying to change that reputation. His company specializes in Piedmontese beef, which comes from cattle originally from Italy and is not widely seen in North America because of their leanness. Due to that, he says this beef is healthier.
“The steaks are just as tender as prime and generally with about 30-50% less fat," said Peed.
His company welcomed Perdue and Fortenberry, to get a tour of their new facility, which cuts down on the process to bring food to your plate.
“Before a steak reaches your plate, it will pass 5 or 6 different hands, and within our business structure, we control that entire process start to finish." said Peed.
Healthier food and the farm to fork process was a primary focus of the farm of the future event, which is helpful during the pandemic.
“Food is a noble enterprise as it is, but when you think about food being health and food being medicine, that’s really exciting to me," said Perdue.
Fortenberry says with all the division among government. The agriculture industry is one that both parties can get behind.
“This is Democrats and Republicans and the administration all working on this single issue of how to provide stabilization policies for farmers and ranchers and food security for those in need," said Fortenberry.
As for Peed, he’s excited about the future, especially when it comes to his livestock.
“Everybody is looking for some kind of health attribute to it, and if you can deliver that in a beef product, it’s a win-win, so you don’t feel like you’re giving up anything. You still have your cake and eat it too, you still have your steak and eat it," said Peed.
