Beef: It's what's for baby

Michelle Weyland trusts American-raised beef so much that she is proud to deliver a gift certificate worth $50 to the last baby born in 2003 at Carson-Tahoe Hospital.

"I have great faith in the U.S. beef supplies," said the president of the Western Nevada Cattlewomen. "The news that the cow was from Canada just points out how much we need country of origin stickers."

Weyland is continuing a tradition for the Cattlewomen that goes back about six years.

"The first baby always gets some neat stuff," said Weyland. "We want to give the last baby of the year something."

Weyland said the recent issue with the Canadian dairy cow shows how the North American Free Trade Agreement has affected the beef industry.

"We are trading with other countries that don't have the same requirements as we do," she said. "We have a lot of small family ranches around here. But the beef prices you pay at the store isn't all going to our ranchers."

The certificate is provided to the Cattlewomen by Butler Meats.

Don't expect to see an infant to be sipping beef from a bottle.

"The benefits of beef are for lactating mothers," Weyland said. "Babies need lots of fat in their diets to develop their brains."

Western Nevada Cattlewomen is a not-for-profit group that, in addition to providing beef for the last baby of the year, provides scholarships for western Nevada agricultural students.