| 8/21/2003 Canada Seeks Changes to Slaughter Requirements - 8/19 CNews Canada But the pitch is getting a cold reception. The Canadian request, which came during talks to lift restrictions on beef, was that the U.S. show flexibility on the demand that cattle under 30 months be slaughtered in a facility that does not process older cows. The two are currently slaughtered in the same plant in Canada. "Certainly they made the request, we heard the request but I'm not aware that we're changing anything," said Ed Curlett, a spokesman for the U.S. Agriculture Department's animal health inspection service. "These mitigations are what we believe is necessary to allow the importation of these products," Curlett said Tuesday from Washington. "This is what the science is telling us is the thing to do . . . in this case, to prevent cross-contamination." Experts believe cattle under 30 months are safe from bovine spongiform encephalopathy, known as mad cow disease. It has been 90 days since the infection was discovered in a lone Alberta breeder cow and international borders slammed shut on Canadian beef, sending the industry into a tailspin with job losses in the hundreds and financial losses around $1 billion. Earlier this month, the U.S. and Mexico, Canada's largest beef market, announced they would partially lift bans on some Canadian meat products other than live animals. Discussions are continuing on the slaughterhouse issue, which has major financial implications for an industry already reeling from three months without access to international markets. Canada has suggested that packing plants could dedicate certain days or slaughtering lines for export cattle to assure the animals are under 30 months of age, which most experts deem as safe. A federal official in Ottawa said talks were at a "delicate state" and did not want to comment. The beef industry is aware that changes are coming if the Canadian Food Inspection Agency cannot negotiate a change in segregation rules. "It means we're going to see a specialization or shifting of processing capacity," said Ted Haney of the Canada Beef Export Federation. About 15 per cent of cattle slaughtered are older animals, including breeder and dairy cattle, which are often processed into hamburger. XL Foods, which kills 450,000 cattle a year, is considering having its Calgary facility slaughter cattle under 30 months while its plant in Moose Jaw, Sask., would handle older cows. "The border is opening September 1st - supposedly," said Lee Nilsson, co-owner of the Calgary-based company. "When we see the border is opening and all the hoops that do come with it, then we will make a decision of what we're doing." The partial border opening allows some cuts of boneless meat from young animals to be shipped south - an estimated 40 per cent of what Canadian producers were sending in early May. Nilsson is watching the U.S.-Canada talks with hope, but said Canada is not in a strong bargaining position. "At this point, what we want and what they say we can have are not necessarily the same thing," he said. Related Link: http://www.cnews.canoe.ca |
This
website is best viewed in Internet
Explorer or
Netscape Navigator versions
4.0 and
above. All content contained herein is subject to copyright law.
Click here to unsubscribe
above. All content contained herein is subject to copyright law.
Click here to unsubscribe