More city-dwelling Texans trust their rural roots

BRYAN, Texas (KBTX) - Texas boasts some of the largest, most modernized metropolises in the land. Yet, according to Rachel Chou, Marketing Director of Beef Loving Texans, city dwellers in Texas have not forgotten their rural roots.

“In Texas, we have four of the largest urban areas in the whole country,” she said, “so you can only imagine that people who are living in urban areas are not getting outside of their city limits very often to see the country. That’s why it’s so important for us to continue to get in front of folks in the urban areas with beautiful food, to then educate them further about agriculture and the importance of the Texas rancher.”

She says it’s not been too difficult a task, particularly given how Texas ranchers are transparent about their work, as a rule.

“Anytime I’m talking to someone who has, maybe, some concerns, or some barriers to choosing beef, or whatever food we’re talking about, being very honest and open and vulnerable to sharing where we are has been incredibly effective. To share the continuing desire to improve that the industry displays all the time and being able to connect in an emotional way.”

Chou says the beef industry, along with agencies like Beef Loving Texans that work to deliver these stories to the public, are a model for how to educate the public on food production.

“We have the opportunity to tell a very urban, Texas community about the rural parts of Texas that they’ve maybe never seen, and we’ve had a really unique opportunity to talk about recipes and beef. But, also, who the people are behind that, and how they care about the animals and the land.”

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