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Groups back mad cow response
By BECKY BOHRER
Associated Press
Officials with leading cattle industry groups in the state said they were pleased with the federal government's plan to halt, for now, an effort to expand cattle and beef trade with Canada because of bovine spongiform encephalopathy. A leader of one of those groups, however, said the move doesn't go far enough.
Bill Bullard, CEO of R-CALF United Stockgrowers of America, said the U.S. Department of Agriculture should suspend all beef and cattle trade with Canada until more is known about the extent of BSE, popularly known as mad cow disease, in the Canadian cattle herd and officials reassess the risk continued trade poses to the U.S. cattle industry and to consumers.
Shipments of younger Canadian cattle to the United States were allowed to resume last summer for the first time since May 2003, when Canada reported a case of mad cow disease. The USDA was moving toward more normalized trade with Canada, with plans to allow for the shipment of older Canadian cattle and the beef from such animals.
But the agency said Friday it planned to put those plans on hold until an investigation into Canada's latest cases of mad cow disease has been completed. The executive vice president of the Canadian Cattlemen's Association, Dennis Laycraft, said the decision appeared to be a matter simply of "due diligence." He expected the investigative work to be completed within weeks.
Canada has reported seven cases of mad cow disease since May 2003; four of those were confirmed this year. In some cases, infected cattle were born after a 1997 ban on the use of cattle protein in cattle feed. Mad cow disease, formally known as bovine spongiform encephalopathy, or BSE, is believed to spread through feed that contains certain tissues from infected animals.
Christie Messer, communications coordinator for the Montana Stockgrowers Association, said her group is concerned about the effectiveness of Canada's feed ban and welcomes the USDA's response.
The executive vice president of the Wyoming Stock Growers Association said fuller trade with Canada should not be an option until that country can show the incidence of mad cow disease there is "very significantly reduced from where it is at this date." More immediate action by the United States to allow for expanded trade could be perceived negatively by U.S. consumers and countries that have accepted U.S. beef exports, Jim Magagna said.
The United States has reported three cases of mad cow disease since December 2003. The first, which involved an animal from Canada, prompted dozens of countries to close their borders to U.S. beef. Many markets have since reopened, at least partially.
Laycraft said the cases found this year in Canada fall within what's considered a "minimal risk range." He said Canada is testing cattle at a high level, "and there's a very high confidence level that, if there are (infected) animals out there, we're going to find them."
"We have BSE, but the incidence we have is very, very low and declining," Laycraft said, adding Canada is on a "path to eradication." He said this isn't a food safety issue.
Bullard argues the United States is taking an "unnecessary risk" accepting Canadian cattle "because there is a likelihood we are importing animals that well could be incubating the disease."
Groups back mad cow response
By BECKY BOHRER
Associated Press
Officials with leading cattle industry groups in the state said they were pleased with the federal government's plan to halt, for now, an effort to expand cattle and beef trade with Canada because of bovine spongiform encephalopathy. A leader of one of those groups, however, said the move doesn't go far enough.
Bill Bullard, CEO of R-CALF United Stockgrowers of America, said the U.S. Department of Agriculture should suspend all beef and cattle trade with Canada until more is known about the extent of BSE, popularly known as mad cow disease, in the Canadian cattle herd and officials reassess the risk continued trade poses to the U.S. cattle industry and to consumers.
Shipments of younger Canadian cattle to the United States were allowed to resume last summer for the first time since May 2003, when Canada reported a case of mad cow disease. The USDA was moving toward more normalized trade with Canada, with plans to allow for the shipment of older Canadian cattle and the beef from such animals.
But the agency said Friday it planned to put those plans on hold until an investigation into Canada's latest cases of mad cow disease has been completed. The executive vice president of the Canadian Cattlemen's Association, Dennis Laycraft, said the decision appeared to be a matter simply of "due diligence." He expected the investigative work to be completed within weeks.
Canada has reported seven cases of mad cow disease since May 2003; four of those were confirmed this year. In some cases, infected cattle were born after a 1997 ban on the use of cattle protein in cattle feed. Mad cow disease, formally known as bovine spongiform encephalopathy, or BSE, is believed to spread through feed that contains certain tissues from infected animals.
Christie Messer, communications coordinator for the Montana Stockgrowers Association, said her group is concerned about the effectiveness of Canada's feed ban and welcomes the USDA's response.
The executive vice president of the Wyoming Stock Growers Association said fuller trade with Canada should not be an option until that country can show the incidence of mad cow disease there is "very significantly reduced from where it is at this date." More immediate action by the United States to allow for expanded trade could be perceived negatively by U.S. consumers and countries that have accepted U.S. beef exports, Jim Magagna said.
The United States has reported three cases of mad cow disease since December 2003. The first, which involved an animal from Canada, prompted dozens of countries to close their borders to U.S. beef. Many markets have since reopened, at least partially.
Laycraft said the cases found this year in Canada fall within what's considered a "minimal risk range." He said Canada is testing cattle at a high level, "and there's a very high confidence level that, if there are (infected) animals out there, we're going to find them."
"We have BSE, but the incidence we have is very, very low and declining," Laycraft said, adding Canada is on a "path to eradication." He said this isn't a food safety issue.
Bullard argues the United States is taking an "unnecessary risk" accepting Canadian cattle "because there is a likelihood we are importing animals that well could be incubating the disease."
