The people have spoken. After several weeks and over 90,000 votes, consumers chose veal parmigiana as their favorite veal dish to celebrate Columbus Day. The promotion was funded by the beef checkoff and designed to encourage home cooks to serve veal for the Columbus Day holiday, and to add veal to their short list of home-dining options.
“We always knew that veal parmigiana was popular, and it’s the perfect dish to serve to family and friends on Columbus Day,” says Ray Krones, chairman of the Joint Veal Committee. “Consumers were asked to select their favorite dish from a list of classic Italian veal specialties, including Veal Piccata, Veal Saltimbocca and Veal Meatballs. Veal Parmigiana was the winner by a landslide.
This promotion with marketing partner Colavita Extra Virgin Olive Oil also included a sweepstakes and one lucky voter, Lukasz Muniga of Park Ridge, Ill., won a trip to Italy. Muniga voted for veal parmigiana on the sweepstakes entry page and said it has always been one of his favorite dishes.
In the long term, he and other consumers can make veal parmigiana and other Italian specialties at home, using recipes featured at www.VealMadeEasy.com. What’s more, many of the featured recipes are diet-friendly and easy to prepare. The recipe for veal parmigiana has just 268 calories and is ready to serve in 15 minutes. Buon Appetito!
For more information about checkoff-funded veal retail initiatives, visit VealMadeEasy.com. For more information about your beef checkoff, visit MyBeefCheckoff.com.
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The Beef Checkoff Program was established as part of the 1985 Farm Bill. The checkoff assesses $1 per head on the sale of live domestic and imported cattle, in addition to a comparable assessment on imported beef and beef products. States retain up to 50 cents on the dollar and forward the other 50 cents per head to the Cattlemen’s Beef Promotion and Research Board, which administers the national checkoff program, subject to USDA approval.
Source: The Beef Checkoff