The Arizona Beef Council (ABC) exhibited at the 70th Annual School Nutrition Association of Arizona (SNAAZ) State Conference trade show on September 26, 2026, in Phoenix, connecting with the professionals who plan, prepare, and serve meals to Arizona students every day. More than 400 people registered to attend the conference, including school food service directors, registered dietitians, cafeteria staff, and other school nutrition leaders from across the state. 

Lauren Maehling, ABC Executive Director, and Tiffany Selchow, ABC Director of Social Marketing and Consumer Outreach, staffed the ABC booth throughout the trade show, visiting with attendees about how beef can fit into school menus and sharing Beef Checkoff-funded resources built specifically for school foodservice. 

Conversations About Beef on the Menu
Many of the conversations at the booth centered on two goals school nutrition professionals share: including more beef in school menus and increasing scratch cooking in their kitchens. Attendees were interested in practical ways to bring beef dishes made from scratch to the lunch line, and ABC staff pointed them to recipes, cooking guidance, and foodservice resources designed to make that shift easier for school kitchens of all sizes. 

Resources for the Cafeteria and the Kitchen
Attendees who stopped by the booth left with tools they could implement right away. ABC staff handed out nearly 200 flyers featuring QR codes that link to two resources: the school nutrition page on Beef. It's What's for Dinner., managed by the National Cattlemen's Beef Association, a contractor to the Beef Checkoff, and a collection of beef school foodservice recipes. The QR codes give busy foodservice professionals a quick way to find beef recipes, menu ideas, and nutrition information scaled for school kitchens. 

Visitors also received beef seasoning packets with a recipe printed on the back so they could mix up more of the same blend themselves, along with Confident Cooking with Beef brochures offering cooking tips and guidance for preparing a variety of beef cuts. Nearly 200 pens bearing the Beef. It's What's for Dinner. logo were also distributed, keeping the brand in hand long after the conference ended. 

Following the conference, all 400-plus registered attendees received an email from Tiffany Selchow recapping the resources shared at the booth, with live links to each one for easy access. The follow-up puts the school nutrition page, the foodservice website collection, and the beef cooking resources just a click away for school nutrition professionals, including those who didn't make it to the booth. 

A Familiar Name in the Inbox 
One of the most encouraging takeaways from this year's trade show was how many attendees already knew the Arizona Beef Council. Many of the school nutrition professionals who visited the booth mentioned receiving Beef So Simple, a Beef Checkoff-funded email newsletter, which they had been added to through the Council's participation in previous SNAAZ conferences. 

Why School Nutrition Matters
School nutrition professionals make menu and purchasing decisions that affect thousands of Arizona students each school day. By building relationships with foodservice directors, dietitians, and cafeteria staff, ABC helps ensure beef is recognized as a nutrient-dense protein that can fit within school meal programs and budgets. The SNAAZ conference remains one of the most direct ways for ABC to reach this audience in person.