The group that made real men want to eat beef now wants to convince young girls that it's cool for them, too.
With about one million kids nationwide forsaking meat and actually eating their vegetables, America's cattlemen are trying to round up the strays and bring them back to the meat-eating herd.
"We're just trying to bring home the point that all foods fit into a healthy diet and, yes, that includes beef," said Mary Young, nutrition director for the National Cattlemen's Beef Association.
Teenagers are the fastest-growing group of vegetarians, according to People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA). And young girls are more than twice as likely to stop eating meat as boys are, market researchers say.
To reach them, the cattlemen's group launched a Web site (www.Cool-2b-real.com) in December that touts healthy living, offers lots of tasty beef recipes, and makes educational kits available to teachers who might want to include lessons on beef in their curriculums.
The cattlemen have cause to worry. One in four teenagers considers vegetarianism "cool," according to Teenage Research Unlimited in Illinois. Their reasons vary, but many cite concern for animals, weight loss, and health for giving up meat, nutritionists say.
Two percent of 13- to 17-year-olds ate no meat, poultry or fish in 2000, up from 1.4 percent from 1995, reported Vegetarian Resource Group, a Baltimore-based nonprofit organization. Five percent ate no beef or pork in 2000.
PETA says the trend is bigger on college campuses, where from 15 to 20 percent of students say they're vegetarians.
For the cattlemen, it makes sense to try to brand these youngsters with product loyalty: In not too many years, they will be parents, and feeding their own little calves.
Part of the group's pitch is to warn youngsters, and their parents, of the dangers of a meatless diet. The cattlemen cite university research suggesting that youths who don't eat beef are more prone to poor health, low self-esteem, eating disorders, and even suicidal thoughts.
"Hogwash," said Michele Shuker, a nutritionist at Children's Hospital of Philadelphia. Though she's a beef-eater, she said, "One does not need beef to live a healthy life."
With record numbers of children suffering from obesity, "kids need to get a grip on portion size and get more physical activity," not load up on beef, she said.
To teens devoted to the cause, meat is a four-letter word.
