Cattlemen slam dietary guideline committee recommendations

DAILY Bites

• The NCBA criticizes the Dietary Guidelines Advisory Committee’s recommendation to replace beef with plant-based proteins.

• Concerns arise over the impact of reducing red meat intake on the 80% of the population that identifies as meat eaters, as beef provides essential nutrients.

• The committee also hesitates to address ultra-processed foods and alcohol, citing insufficient data while pushing for changes in red meat consumption.

DAILY Discussion

The National Cattlemen’s Beef Association is criticizing the Dietary Guidelines Advisory Committee’s recent recommendations. The committee proposes substituting beef with plant-based proteins such as beans, peas, and lentils. The NCBA describes this suggestion as “impractical” and “out of touch.”

“The preview meeting of the Dietary Guidelines Advisory Committee this week stands out as one of the most out-of-touch, impractical, and elitist conversations in the history of this process,” said NCBA Vice President of Government Affairs Ethan Lane. “After 22 months of public discussion and lip service to transparency, we are disappointed by the number of chaotic new directions that were proposed at the literal last minute. We would laugh at the suggestion that beans, peas, and lentils are going to replace lean red meat and fill all the nutrient gaps Americans are facing if it weren’t such a dangerous and deceptive idea.”

Dr. Shalene McNeill, NCBA Executive Director of Nutrition Science and Registered Dietitian, added, “We’ve had more than four decades of Dietary Guidelines advice, and during that time red meat consumption has declined, yet obesity and chronic disease is on the rise. Seventy percent of the calories in the U.S. diet are plant-based. Now, the committee wants to reduce red meat intake even further, marginalizing the 80 percent of the population who identify themselves as meat eaters. 

Beef contributes only 5 percent of the calories in the American diet, but more than 5 percent of essential nutrients like potassium, phosphorous, iron, B6, niacin, protein, zinc, choline, and B12, McNeill explains.

“These recommendations put some of the most vulnerable at risk for nutrient gaps, especially older Americans, adolescent girls, and women of child-bearing age,” adds Dr. McNeill. “It’s baffling that we are trying to get Americans to cut out red meat when the evidence indicates nutrient deficiencies and chronic disease are increasing as red meat consumption declines. As a registered dietitian and nutrition scientist, I am concerned that basing guidelines on highly academic exercises, hypothetical modeling, and weak science on red meat will not produce relevant or practical guidelines and will not help us achieve healthier diets.”

The Dietary Guidelines Advisory Committee is responsible for providing recommendations to the U.S. Department of Agriculture and the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services as they develop the 2025-2030 Dietary Guidelines for Americans.

The panel has also expressed reluctance to recommend major changes due to inadequate data in several areas, including the health effects of specific dietary patterns. During their recent meeting, the group refrained from addressing ultra-processed foods, citing insufficient data and definitions. They also deferred to ongoing scientific reviews regarding alcoholic beverages.

Experts involved in the development of the 2025-2030 Dietary Guidelines have noted the lack of sufficient data to establish clear conclusions about the health implications of ultra-processed foods.