Posted on 08/24/2005 6:34:01 AM PDT by snowsislander
(Billings, Mont.) – R-CALF USA expressed disappointment with the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (USDA-APHIS) proposed rule titled “Importation of Whole Cuts of Boneless Beef from Japan,” published in Thursday’s Federal Register (70 Fed. Reg. 48,494) to amend the agency’s regulation for the importation of meat and other edible animal products that would allow Japan to export boneless cuts of beef to the United States.
“This is another example of the USDA tilting the playing field away from independent U.S. cattle producers by continuing to give market access before we gain market access,” said R-CALF USA President and Co-Founder Leo McDonnell.
“In addition, USDA has yet to implement the scientifically recommended measures to prevent the potential for BSE amplification if it is introduced through imports,” said Missouri veterinarian and R-CALF USA Region VI Director Max Thornsberry. “USDA’s own scientists have strongly and consistently advised the agency to strengthen the U.S. feed ban by prohibiting plate waste from cattle feed before the U.S. lifts its ban on imported beef from any country where BSE exists.”
Thornsberry, who also chairs the R-CALF USA Animal Health Committee, explained that the plate waste loophole would allow the uneaten portions of imported beef from BSE affected countries served at domestic restaurants to potentially enter the food chain for U.S. cattle. Although Japan currently performs a BSE test on all cattle slaughtered for human consumption, nothing in this rule indicates importation of beef from Japan would be required to cease if Japan decides to stop testing for BSE.
“Ironically, while the USDA ignores this potential pathway for BSE infectivity, Japan has prohibited the feeding of plate waste to cattle since 2002. Japan has gone much further in developing systems to prevent exposure of cattle to BSE by prohibiting the feeding of blood meal and poultry meal.”
Thornsberry explained that while Japan did not have a feed ban in place prior to 2001, it has since adopted the most stringent BSE risk-mitigation measures recommended by science, and will likely eradicate the disease from its cattle herds long before countries like Canada, which has chosen not to adopt stringent risk-mitigation procedures. Canada has chosen to implement only the minimal BSE-protection measures, despite recognition of multiple cases of the disease in Alberta.
“It is a real irony that while USDA supports its proposed rule based on the fact that Japan conducts BSE tests on all cattle slaughtered in Japan, thereby ensuring that BSE-infected cattle are removed from the food chain, the agency continues to prohibit U.S. packers from voluntarily testing for BSE to meet Japan’s testing requirements, and as a means of restoring other U.S. export markets,” said Thornsberry.
“The U.S. cattle industry deserves consistent and science-based standards from USDA, but this proposed rule is inconsistent with what the agency has stated are necessary standards for reopening U.S. export markets with countries the agency considers to be minimal risk for BSE,” said McDonnell.
McDonnell explained that in January 2005, USDA published a major rule that set criteria for determining whether imports from a country would present a minimal risk of introducing BSE into the United States. While R-CALF USA has shown those criteria are insufficient, USDA now proposes to ignore its own rule and allow imports from countries that do not meet the minimal-risk criteria.”
Thornsberry also expressed concern about USDA’s action.
“It is obvious from this rule that the USDA intends to open the U.S. market to countries that have identified cases of BSE within their domestic herds,” he explained. “It was thought that BSE affected countries would have to meet the same requirements placed upon Canada, and thus be classified as minimal risk countries prior to being cleared to export into the U.S. marketplace. That does not appear to be the case.
“If the United States does not take a leadership role in upwardly harmonizing global import and export standards for beef from countries affected by BSE, the U.S. will become the dumping ground for beef from countries that have BSE endemic within their cattle herds,” Thornsberry said.
Also disappointing about USDA’s proposed rule is that it clearly shows how the agency is subjecting U.S. cattle producers to a double standard. The proposed rule requires Japan to certify that exported beef was born, raised, and slaughtered in Japan.
“This is the very definition of origin that USDA found so objectionable in the Mandatory Country-of-Origin Labeling (M-COOL) law passed by Congress in the 2002 Farm Bill and intended to benefit U.S. cattle producers,” said McDonnell. “USDA has repeatedly claimed there is no food-safety basis for COOL and that the ‘born, raised and slaughtered’ standard is both unnecessary and unworkable. Yet, in its proposed rule, USDA is using the ‘born, raised, and slaughtered’ standard in COOL to assure the safety of Japanese beef, for the benefit of the Japanese cattle industry. This is the type of inconsistent treatment of the U.S. cattle industry that continues to erode industry confidence in the USDA.”
“USDA cannot – with complete disregard for established science – keep moving the bar to suit its political agenda,” Thornsberry emphasized. “It is a disservice to our trading partners, a disservice to U.S. cattle producers, and a disservice to global trade relations.
USDA will consider public comments on its Proposed Rule that are submitted before or on Sept. 19. For more information on making comments, or to view the Proposed Rule, please visit www.r-calfusa.com and click on “BSE-Litigation.”
Japanese beef (wagyu) is good even if it is expensive, but I myself think it's more important to clean up this BSE mess rather than to be able buy some expensive beef imported from Japan. Certainly we don't lack for excellent beef grown here in the U.S.
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