Beefshi was front and center in New York City’s Times Square this past March, as the North American Meat Institute (NAMI), a contactor to the beef checkoff, introduced the Big Apple to the new items created for the 2019 campaign. Beefshi is a creative new fusion-food concept that uses prepared beef products like bologna, summer sausage, corned beef and pastrami as central ingredients in sushi.

Giant, colorful images of Beefshi and a link to the Beefshi.com website towered above Times Square for all to see. The theme of the Times Square promotion was “Your Sushi is Getting Beefed Up!”

“Americans have always loved beef, and over the past few decades, their love of sushi has catapulted,” said Eric Mittenthal, NAMI vice president of public affairs. “In fact, sushi is one of the fastest-growing categories in supermarket deli departments. Therefore, we couldn’t think of a better way to celebrate National Deli Meat Month than focusing on the marriage of beef and sushi.”

Last year, during the retail-focused Annual Meat Conference, hundreds of retailers sampled three Beefshi recipes, and 55 completed a short survey that captured their reactions. Overall, 95% of those who tried the Beefshi creations liked them, while half of the retailers said they would make sense to have at the supermarket.

Working with multiple state beef councils and a chef trained at the Culinary Institute of America, NAMI has developed eight new Beefshi recipes, adding to eight recipes created in 2018. These recipes are intended to introduce the concept and inspire consumers, retailers and foodservice operators to develop their own Beefshi creations.

By finding new and creative ways to market beef, the checkoff is helping drive demand every day. Learn more about Beefshi — including recipes, how-to videos and nutrition facts – at Beefshi.com.