Beef: How to Choose and Cook It was part of a larger series of informative pamphlets published by the Canadian federal government's Department of Agriculture. These promotional works, which highlighted the various sectors of Canadian agriculture, encouraged readers to use Canada's home-grown meats, dairy products, fruits, vegetables, and cereals. Most pamphlets included recipes along with educational text and diagrams. 

Under the auspices of the Live Stock Branch of the Dominion of Canada--Department of Agriculture, F.G. Semple oversaw the writing of Beef: How to Choose and Cook It. According to Elizabeth Driver, F.G. Semple (or, Frank G. Semple) was likely a farmer's son, born in Waughs River, Nova Scotia, in 1886. Semple was living in Ottawa in the 1930s, when Beef: How to Choose and Cook It was published. Likely, his agricultural background influenced his later work writing the Department of Agriculture promotional pamphlets.