Kara Mastel (00:08):
Good morning. Wherever you are, it doesn't matter what time zone you're in, we're just excited you've tuned in. Welcome back to another episode of the Bovine podcast, brought to you by Alberta Beef Producers. I'm your host, Kara Mastel, and as always, I'm happy to be here. As you may or may not know, the Canadian beef industry is constantly advocating and looking for different market opportunities around the world. There is a lot going on behind the scenes. Now, this of course, translates to actually getting on a plane and traveling around the world to ensure that Canada actually has a seat at the table. Today's guest just got back from a trade mission in Southeast Asia as an Alberta Beef representative. I'm joined here today by Brodie Haugan. Brodie, how's it going today?
Brodie Haugan (01:00):
Going great. Thank you for having me.
Kara Mastel (01:02):
Absolutely. Okay, so your position has changed a bit probably since the last time we've talked. You used to be, you were past chair of ABP now kind of switched some roles here. You're on the CCA. Do you want to talk a bit about that?
Brodie Haugan (01:17):
Yeah, my life has changed a bit in regards to cattle politics. I finished up the 10 years with Alberta Beef Producers and had an absolute blast during that time and in the last four months, yeah, we've shifted a bit. It's slowed down a bit, which I've liked. Got to focus more on some things at home, but dove headfirst into the national side of things. So still getting my feet wet, understanding the playing field and understanding some of the issues on the national side, but really excited about the work and the positions that I hold within the Canadian Cattleman's Association.
Kara Mastel (01:50):
And I mean, now we're saying slowed down, but we're here today to talk because you went as an Alberta representative to a trade mission. Talk about where you went.
Brodie Haugan (02:02):
Yeah, once in a lifetime opportunity came up kind of last minute and it was kind of all hands on deck to try to figure out who could go and how we could ensure Alberta beef was a part of the trip. So I guess, yeah, the request came in for Alberta Beef to travel alongside the Canada Beef team as well as the Provincial Ag Minister and his team. It's something that during my time with Alberta Beef Producers, we pushed hard on both the groups to say that it's invaluable to have a producer voice in the room, in person with them when they left the country to promote Alberta agriculture and specifically Alberta beef. So we've been pushing for it for a lot of years. And so then last minute when this trip came together between the current over B producer, executive and myself, we ensured we got someone on the trip and I guess my name was pulled out of the hat for that to fill that spot. So
Kara Mastel (03:03):
Where did you guys end up going?
Brodie Haugan (03:05):
Yeah, so the trip took us to Vietnam and to the Philippines, and it was about a 12 day trip in total with travel. And it was quick, but an amazing experience.
Kara Mastel (03:17):
And like you said, you traveled along, so did you actually go with the minister and with Canada Beef or you met 'em there sort of thing?
Brodie Haugan (03:23):
Yeah, so Canada beef was already on the ground. They actually traveled to five different countries within their two and a half week trip. So they were busy. I met them in country, so I met them in Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam. But I actually had the opportunity to travel and basically shadow the exact schedule of the minister and his team coming out of Alberta here. So I spent all the travel days, same flights, same everything with them and had a lot of face-to-face time with them, which is, we'll get into that, but it's also one of the highlights of the trip was to be able to have that much time with the team and just see how they work.
Kara Mastel (04:04):
Yeah, absolutely. Had you ever been over to Vietnam or the Philippines before?
Brodie Haugan (04:08):
No, this is my second trip in my life, I guess across the ocean. So it was definitely a new experience and first time into that Southeast Asia area.
Kara Mastel (04:17):
Yeah, initial thoughts, what did you think when you got there?
Brodie Haugan (04:21):
It's hot and humid and it rains all the time. Actually, the heat didn't get to me. It was hot. I mean, it was 33, 35 degrees every day, a hundred percent humidity and rained every afternoon. The biggest difference though was when you take, there's about 110 million people in each one of those countries and in the same land base, smaller than half the size of Alberta, that's a big cultural change. Just the amount of sheer amount of people in such a small place.
Kara Mastel (04:51):
Yeah, absolutely. And I was in Vietnam about 10 years ago and I was so amazed by that too. And also no crosswalks. You're just pushing your way through the streets, which was a little intimidating at first.
Brodie Haugan (05:06):
Yeah. I noticed that their solution for any infrastructure problems is just hire more people rather than setting up streetlights and crosswalk lights, they just hire people to direct traffic. So in any one of the busy intersections, there was four or five people standing there directing everything. So it's quite neat to see.
Kara Mastel (05:26):
And I mean that humidity is something too, coming from southeastern Alberta like you and I do that. Yeah, I remember getting out of the shower and drying off and being like, okay, and now I am soaked again.
Brodie Haugan (05:40):
It was quite something to go in and out of air conditioning and walking around and forgetting your umbrella and getting soaked, trying to walk to the next meeting and having multiple showers a day, trying to ensure you're at your tip top shape, wearing your suit and being presentable and it was quite the experience. Yeah.
Kara Mastel (05:58):
Yeah, that's pretty cool. So main goal of the trip, you guys went over there, but why?
Brodie Haugan (06:04):
Yeah, so it was a really cool opportunity because we were able to be very efficient with the time and funds spent because there was kind of two overly goals of the trip. First and foremost was promote Alberta beef, promote Canadian beef alongside the Canadian beef team, and then secondly was to shadow the provincial Ag minister and his team. So ultimately the goal was to ensure that Alberta beef and Canadian beef was mentioned and discussed in every conversation we had and really highlighted in every conversation as we traveled around.
Kara Mastel (06:44):
Any specific, are we really working to get into that Asian market right now?
Brodie Haugan (06:48):
Yeah, definitely are. So it's Vietnam right now is the fifth largest exporting country for Canadian beef, and the Philippines is an emerging market. So both I would explain it as it was the opportunity of what the future has in store for the potential of Canadian beef. Both markets a large population starving, they want Canadian beef. There was so much interest in what the product was, what it could bring, what the market potential was. So a ton of excitement. A lot of the people we had conversations with had some exposure to what the product was, but they all wanted more. They were just very excited. I'd say right now in comparison to our large export markets, yeah, it's kind of just a blip on the map, but at the same time, I think those two countries for sure are going to play a large role in the coming years if it's five or 10 years down the road.
Kara Mastel (07:57):
Are they looking for specific cuts or what is their goal, I guess? How do they consume beef over there?
Brodie Haugan (08:04):
So there's a lot of cultural differences. They're looking for consistency and supply. So there are some unique, I guess, cuts that they are looking for that wouldn't necessarily be higher in demand here, which is great because it diversifies our options for sales for our product, but it's trying to identify how our product fits into their cultural menu, into what their population is used to. And we're used to a nice big, thick ribeye steak, throw it on the barbecue, and that's how we consume a lot of our beef or in a hamburger. And over there, how they prepare their food, what they're used to it is different. So the products they are looking are different, which is neat. So definitely a ton of opportunity there.
Kara Mastel (09:01):
Any chance we can diversify our markets there. That's incredible. So as a representative of the Alberta beef industry, did you have a primary message?
Brodie Haugan (09:12):
Well, the primary message was just to ensure that they knew that the product was available. A lot of it was just education and getting in the room, being face-to-face, showing that we're there to support them. Like Ed mentioned, a lot of the conversations were around diversifying. So on our side, we're trying to diversify the export of our product, and on their side, they're looking to diversify their imports knowing that they may be highly connected to one or two other markets around the world, if it's Australian or American, United States beef, and they're looking at the current world events that are happening and fully understand that they need to be as diversified as possible to be in a safer position moving forward. So I think, yeah, just that message was, especially with the Canada Beef team, was we're here, we have a great product, it's consistent, it's high quality, one of the best in the world is the best in the world, and we'd like to do more business with you. And how do we continue to build this relationship if it's just through understanding and conversations or if it's actually through getting product in their hands. Everyone we met had a different angle and a different niche in the market and different goals. A lot of really good opportunity though,
Kara Mastel (10:35):
And talk about the importance or I guess the power even behind having organizations like that, like Canada Beef, that you guys are all presenting the same message.
Brodie Haugan (10:44):
So Canada Beef is interesting because from coming from Alberta, our producers in this province have invested a lot of money in Canada beef over the years, a good portion of our national checkoff goes to Canada beef. So it was really neat to see how their team worked on the ground. I will say that I'm a big proponent for, you have to have the right people in the right places. And Canada Beef was a great example of that. They had some incredible staff that actually were on the ground that live and work in those areas, and they manage those markets and having those people on the ground with relationships and respect within that community and that culture instantly elevated the conversation and our presence once the Alberta team sort of hit the ground. So to see how it goes from a checkoff with the sail ring in Alberta to an investment into a national organization, to an investment into a country like Vietnam and Philippines was really to connect that full chain and see full circle how our producer dollars are being invested.
Kara Mastel (11:59):
Yeah, that's really incredible because like you said, lots of times we, not that you don't value the other organizations, but as a producer you just see it as a checkoff number and that's that, but there's some really important work going on behind the scenes.
Brodie Haugan (12:14):
Yeah, exactly. And I mean the team we have, I mean, they're good at what they do. They know our product very well, and yeah, I have full trust in that team that they're trying to push on every angle they can to diversify our export markets, but also increase the value of every portion of the animals we are selling.
Kara Mastel (12:35):
So like you said, lots and lots of meetings when you were over there, key individuals or organizations you met with?
Brodie Haugan (12:41):
Yeah, so we met with a lot of people, a lot of boardrooms, a lot of handshaking, a lot of food service companies, and quite a few large import companies. I guess one of the most recognizable, I guess would be Cargill, we met with the Cargill Vietnam team in their head office and it was like talking to one of the Cargill teams back at home here, a lot of connections, a lot of the same conversations. And then we talked to a lot of the food service companies that worked in the hotel, retail restaurant spaces, so just a lot of both large and small companies, companies that worked in more than just those two countries that we were visiting. They had large footprints, so the conversations started more local, but then they quickly expanded to covering many different countries and different markets.
(13:44):
So yeah, no one, I guess in particular of note, but just a lot of influential companies that are really excited about our product and I guess really excited about growing their demand and their businesses. So I guess on the other side of it, and maybe I should back up a bit and explain a bit, but during the trip we didn't, so Canada Beef, we had our schedule and we had meetings every day. We'd meet with three or four different food service companies and retails and grocery stores and things like that. And then about a third of our schedule, we'd have the opportunity to overlap with the minister and his team and the meetings they were having. So understandably we couldn't attend everything that the minister was doing, but anytime there was an opportunity to highlight beef or bring the minister in, we definitely leveraged that opportunity.
(14:39):
And so when we had those more joint larger meetings, it was very neat to see because we were there, we could really push on the minister to on beef, focus on our product and really amplify that conversation. So I'd like to think we did help steer some of that conversation that he would've had otherwise more back to Alberta beef and Canadian beef. And then the third types of meetings and events we had were actually events. They were kind of the product launch events and they were more focused around top chefs, influencers and sort of that culinary side of the industry. So it was there, we had several events during our trip that it was a small group setting, so I'd say 15 to 20 people, but they were highly influential people or famous chefs and culinary individuals. So that's when we'd really dive into the specifics of this is the product, this is what we can do for you. And those were I guess, some of the highlights of the trip. And I guess there was one event in particular. We could dive in a bit into a bit later, but
Kara Mastel (16:00):
Sure. Just a quick question though. Did the stakeholders have any questions for you guys? Were they concerned about environmental practices, or I shouldn't say concerned, but what were their focus points on what Alberta Beef could bring?
Brodie Haugan (16:17):
Yeah, so I will be honest, we didn't get many if maybe one or two questions about sustainability and environment. I went fully expecting to have to talk more about our processes and all the good things we do for the environment and the sustainability work. And some of the programming like Verified Beef and CRSB honestly didn't have a single question about 'em. It really came back to more, we know that Canada Beef is one of the best products in the world. We know that it's a high standard. They wanted confidence and consistency of the product and supply of the product. One of the biggest issues being so far away, it became evident very quickly that getting our product there consistently is a hurdle. And a lot of the companies we were meeting with wanted to ensure that if they were going to start bringing a product in, can they consistently, so if the investment was made on their behalf to try to push a new product, can the product be consistently delivered moving forward?
(17:27):
And that there was some stories that they would wait up to three months to a year to get a container delivered to their warehouse to get onto the shelves or into their restaurants. And I couldn't imagine trying to run a business with a year lead time on product. So that was definitely one of their main focuses of our conversation was you building the Canadian herd, what do we expect of the future for supply of the product? And a lot of them were quite disappointed to hear that we're still in a drought. I don't know if we've seen the bottom of the cow herd yet for the numbers and if our supplies are going to start increasing or not. So they were a bit disappointed to hear that, but we tried to explain just exactly what's happening on the ground and some of the difficulties the industry is facing over here.
Kara Mastel (18:18):
Any responses to that? How do we fix that shipping problem besides growing the herd?
Brodie Haugan (18:24):
I think it just comes back to communications and just building relations. I do think once we get in the future, we'll see if hopefully we get back to bigger cow numbers and more volume, and as we have more volume, there'll be more supply for these different demands. But a lot of it I think is just building the relationships, opening up the channels as far as the role we played. We weren't there to sell a specific product to a specific company. We're there to just say, this is a Canadian product. There's a whole bunch of players in the market. We'll do our best to try to connect you with some of those distributors. But at that point, Canada Beef and the team, it's hands off, Nope, you need to make your business decisions, but we are here to support you in the bigger picture to promote Canada beef. So it's kind of like we're there to try to spur the conversation on and then let the business happen behind the scenes type of thing.
Kara Mastel (19:24):
Makes sense. Absolutely. So these meals you had with some of these big fancy chefs, anything prepared in, did you have beef at any of these meals, was be prepared in different ways or anything that surprised you or was maybe your favorite?
Brodie Haugan (19:41):
Yeah, it was quite interesting, especially during some of our launch events. We definitely had meals that had Canadian beef in them. I would say the food was amazing, but it was definitely focused more on the flavor and the sauces. And it was explained to us that historically their culture was built around not having access to many of these top end products that we're used to here in Canada. And so in order to combat that, they've gotten really good at using spices and sauces and everything to make food amazing. But the inputs may have been of lesser quality or sort of some interesting cuts. So the food was amazing and they can do, yeah, we had some very good dishes and some very good meals. And now I guess our part is get Canadian beef onto the menus to add to that and really make 'em that much better.
(20:45):
So the last day we were there, we actually had an influencer event over lunch, and we went to one of the culinary schools and one of the famous chefs was actually leading the class. There was about 16 or 18 people included in the class, and we brought in some ribeye steaks and some short ribs, and they were cooking meals with these products and they had a very traditional, this has been the Philippines, so a very traditional Filipino type of meal that they were preparing with lots of sauces, lots of flavors. And we actually took the opportunity to take a couple ribeyes and just throw 'em on the barbecue, put some salt and pepper on 'em and cook 'em how we're used to. And we cut 'em up and everyone was sharing their dishes because everyone kind of took a different twist on what they were preparing.
(21:35):
And it was neat to see how many people were, oh, they looked at what we were doing and said, we never thought in a million years to cook like that or prepare like that. And that was kind of a highlight of the trip was that event to see some of these top chefs and influencers sort of interact with us and cook food and everyone was trying the food and everyone was so excited to see what we were doing. And then I've followed several of these accounts, social media accounts coming out of that event, and it's been a week already, and every day it seems like another person is at home barbecuing a steak, trying something new that they saw that day at that class. So yeah, very neat.
Kara Mastel (22:22):
What a cool metaphor almost in some ways for what we can just learn if we're just all open and at the table and we all just bring something different to the table.
Brodie Haugan (22:35):
And I think that's coming back to the purpose of this trip and what was so valuable from it was just being there in person. A lot of what we do as representing the industry is showing up.
Kara Mastel (22:46):
Let's maybe shift a bit to the minister, the importance of being able to be in those meetings, but also how does it build the relationship at home?
Brodie Haugan (22:57):
Yeah, so I guess a bit about the minister team. So we had the opportunity to travel with the Alberta Agriculture and Irrigation minister, so Minister RJ Sisson, as well as his deputy minister Jason Hale. It was a very neat opportunity to just have the one-on-one face-to-face time for 10 days. They were there to promote everything. Alberta, which as a cattle producer excites me because I'm more than just a cattle producer. We know that most, almost all of our producers are highly diversified operations and have family members and individuals that work in many different fields. And so to get to work with and see a minister on the ground promoting everything, Alberta was definitely eyeopening. And again, really, really neat to see all the hard work and conversations that they're having, ensuring that those relationships are being built in every country, that there is an opportunity, because I'll come back to saying Alberta and Vietnam and Alberta and the Philippines may not be the number one and top three type of countries that we do business with, but there's incredible opportunities there that either will happen soon or will happen eventually.
Kara Mastel (24:25):
Do you see this as something that could continue happening that now the minister maybe looks and goes, okay, that was valuable to have Alberta beef at the table?
Brodie Haugan (24:33):
I sure hope so, knowing that we're not going to be able to make every situation and trip work, but the opportunity to travel along with them and bring in the conversation of beef, there was definitely events that happened that the minister wouldn't have done if it wasn't for Canada Beef being there. So I'd like to think that because we were there, it definitely amplified the role the minister played in the conversation of beef. So moving forward, I think this is a wonderful opportunity for the investment of producer dollars, especially when there's multiple reasons to be there. There was the Canada beef angle and the minister angle, and anytime we can find efficient trips like that as representatives of the industry, a hundred percent, we need to jump on them. I mean, being this on the political side of the industry long enough, there are hundreds of meetings that we could attend. It's so valuable to have producers in the chairs with the voice at all these meetings, but it can be very costly. It sucks up a lot of time and very frustrating to be honest, at the end of the day with a lot of them. But when you find efficiencies like this to do multiple things all at once, that's to me where the industry does need to double down on investing in those opportunities.
Kara Mastel (26:00):
Now, we've of course talked about a lot of things here, but now you've been home for a while, you're back on Alberta time. What are your main takeaways from the event or from the whole trip now that you have really had some time to think about it?
Brodie Haugan (26:16):
Yeah, the trip went by in a flash. It was a blink of an eye, and it was over going into it. I thought, oh, being away for two weeks is going to be a long time. But anything, time goes by quick. And my biggest takeaways definitely would be that as Canada, as Alberta, we have such a tremendous story. We need to ensure that we have that global perspective of what it is we doing at home. I think sometimes we can go down rabbit holes of thinking, we need to be very niche, very specific about details. And at the end of the day, we have a wonderful product. We need to look bigger scale. How do we ensure that we have representation and we're representing the product as a whole to fill these demands and fill these markets around the world and really double down on that and get, yeah, that's why we need to continue to have representation on these trips and in these markets to ensure that those connections and conversations stay open and we can apply that back here in the province.
(27:30):
So one thing I guess I didn't mention earlier was there was a big focus around branded programs. And again, this gets more into the actual the business side, and that isn't what we were diving into, but there was a lot of interest in, they didn't talk about the environmental side or the sustainability side. They wanted to just know more that as a whole, Canada has an amazing product. What are you doing to ensure that it stays the best product in the world and stays consistent? But then break it down to they want, what is the branded program that they're buying to try to get a unique angle in their market? So if it was certified Angus or going down the list of all the different branded type of products that our different distributors offer, that's definitely what a lot of the individuals we're latching onto. So I guess coming back to Alberta and what we can do as an industry is really be proud of our story and double down on the fact that we need to do a better job and continue to do a good job of advocating what it is we do and the opportunities we have in Alberta, and don't get so focused on the real niche, small details, think big picture
Kara Mastel (28:58):
As much as it is important that we're always striving to be better and do better things, it's also important to recognize what we already have and what we've built is incredible.
Brodie Haugan (29:07):
Yeah.
Kara Mastel (29:08):
So now that you're on the Canadian Cattle Association, how do you plan to apply what you learned from this mission to maybe future initiatives?
Brodie Haugan (29:18):
That's a good question. I don't think there's anything particular, but I think it's just sort of broadening my perspective and my understanding as I continue to do the best I can representing the industry at home. Opportunities like this, I'm so thankful that I have opportunities represent the industry, and every time I get to go on a trip like this, it broadens my understanding. So I think how I'm going to apply my experiences that I've had is more when I'm in the boardrooms having the conversations at home here, I'll definitely take a second to look at some of the different angles in the true effects some of our decisions are having on the ground at home, how that will affect some of the bigger picture direction I guess we're taking as an industry.
Kara Mastel (30:11):
Absolutely. Anything else you'd like to add about your trip or maybe what you've got coming up at CCA, anything you're excited for?
Brodie Haugan (30:20):
Yeah, the one thing I'll come back to see is we have some amazing people in our industry. It's one thing that the producers don't get to see. I wish everyone in the industry got to see that, but understandably, it's impossible for every producer to have these experiences. But just in the 12 day trip, I got to see some of our topnotch staff that are on the ground working hard for the industry. So I would double down on the fact that as producers have confidence that we have some incredible individuals on the ground working for us on many angles. And to me, that's truly what will put us ahead and push us forward is continuing to invest in the people. We all know that we have a great product and we're going to continue to create a great product. But second on the list for me is continue to build that strong team and double down on the investment of the people.
Kara Mastel (31:19):
Yeah, that's huge. People is everything, and if you can have, like you said, the right people at the table, that's invaluable. Okay, well thank you very much for your time, Brody. I appreciate it very much and hope you're enjoying being back in the land of Southern Alberta.
Brodie Haugan (31:37):
Yeah, thank you very much. And every day is different. Nothing ever slows down. So yeah, thank you very much for the conversation and we'll look forward to what comes at us next.
Kara Mastel (31:51):
I know I said it in the conversation with Brody, but I have to say it again. I think that we can learn so much about each other just over a meal, sharing our differences, our similarities, and where we can learn from each other. It might be just as simple as realizing that, man, that steak tastes really good on the grill with just salt and pepper, or, Hey, have you tried preparing it this way? There's just a lot we can learn. I mean, of course right now I'm just talking about food, but it is just such a great metaphor for the broader spectrum of having these conversations and the importance of these conversations and the importance of sitting down face to face and learning from each other. It sounded like a very neat and valuable trip that Brody got to partake on, and it sounds like we had some great Alberta and Canadian representation over there. As always, if you have any questions or feedback, do not hesitate to reach out either through ADP social channels, or you can reach me on my email kara [email protected]. Until next time, stay cool and maybe think about how you can prepare your beef differently the next time you have it on the dinner menu. Bye for now.