(Washington, DC) – The
American Meat Institute (AMI) today urged USDA
to publish a proposed rule to permit the
importation of cattle 30 months of age and
older and the beef products derived from such
animals.
“Many U.S. beef packers
that specialize in the slaughter of older
animals still find themselves in an extremely
difficult economic situation because cattle
over 30 months are not permitted entry from
Canada,” AMI President J. Patrick Boyle said
in a letter sent to Agriculture Secretary Mike
Johanns.
In the letter, Boyle said that
BSE prevention and control measures implemented
in both Canada and the U.S. are virtually
identical and that both countries have taken
extraordinary measures to assure the safety of
the beef supply and to protect cattle health.
USDA has designated Canada - and only Canada
– as a minimal risk region, he
noted.
“Continuing to limit
importation of live cattle to those animals
less than 30 months and to restrict the
importation to beef products from those animals
is without a scientific foundation. Indeed, in
its minimal risk rule published in January
2005, USDA properly concluded that importation
of beef from cattle over 30 months was
scientifically warranted, yet illogically
excluded the importation of older cattle,”
Boyle said. “While the resulting economic
inequities prompted the department to delay
this part of the regulation, international
standards support restoring trade in both older
animals and beef derived from
them.”
Boyle told Johanns that fully
restoring cattle and beef trade in North
America is a critical step toward preventing
further equity losses in the meat packing
industry, regaining additional market access
with other North America countries, such as
Mexico, enhancing global competitiveness and
protecting processing jobs in the U.S.
According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics,
7,800 U.S. jobs have been lost since May 2003,
when Canada detected its first case of BSE and
cattle trade with Canada
ceased.
“Overwhelmingly, the
scientific evidence demonstrates that food
safety is not dependent on the age of the
animal, but whether or not specified risk
materials (SRMs) that may contain the
infectious agent are eliminated from the food
supply,” he said. He also noted that FDA is
proceeding to strengthen its feed regulations
to prevent the possible introduction and spread
of BSE in the U.S. cattle herd.
Boyle
urged Johanns to abide by international trading
rules set by The World Organization for Animal
Health (OIE), which permits cattle, beef and
offal to be traded in international commerce,
even from high BSE risk countries, if the
exporting country implements appropriate BSE
risk mitigation measures.
“We firmly
believe that the U.S. must lead the way in
establishing a rational BSE trade policy. Only
by setting the appropriate,
scientifically-based, internationally
recognized standards for trading in cattle and
beef can we expect governments of other
countries, such as Japan and Korea, to apply
such standards and restore access to their
markets for U.S. beef exports,” Boyle
said.
To read the entire letter, go to:
http://www.meatinstitute.org/Template.cfm?Section=Canada2&CONTENTID=3918&TEMPLATE=/ContentManagement/ContentDisplay.cfm
AMERICAN MEAT INSTITUTE URGES USDA TO PERMIT IMPORTS OF CANADIAN CATTLE 30 MONTHS AND OLDER
Friday, July 29, 2005
For more information contact:
David Ray Vice President, Public Affairs 202-587-4243 dray@meatinstitute.org |
Janet Riley Sr. Vice President, Public Affairs 202-587-4245 jriley@meatinstitute.org |

