News Update

News Update
May 2, 2006

Canadian BSE cow’s herdmates potentially in U.S.

The Canadian Food Inspection Agency (CFIA) has found 23 live cattle that were potentially exposed to the same feed as the latest bovine spongiform encephalopathy (BSE)-affected animal from Canada, according to an article on brownfieldnetwork.com. There are also reports that 15 herdmates of the affected cow were exported to the U.S.

Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS) Administrator Ron DeHaven says that even if the animals did come into the country, the U.S. has safeguards in place, specifically the feed ban and removal of specified risk materials (SRMs), the article continued.

Canada has provided the U.S. with a time frame of when the suspected animals would have crossed the border, and APHIS is using that information to trace the animals, the article concluded.

Korea advances U.S. beef imports

Four teams from South Korea’s Ministry of Agriculture and Foresty will visit the U.S. next week to inspect 36 meat-processing facilities that want to ship beef to South Korea, The Korea Times reported.

The team of experts is to examine the U.S. facilities for two weeks and submit a report on their findings. If the Korean government gives its final approval, U.S. beef could be sold in the country as soon as early June.

Taiwan cuts off Tyson beef imports after bone fragments found

The Department of Health in Taiwan has banned beef imports from Tyson Fresh Meats plants after rib bone fragments were found in one shipment late last week, meatingplace.com reported.

The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) called the shipment an “isolated event,” but plans an investigation to determine if there was packaging negligence at the plant. USDA pointed out that rib bones are not SRMs, unlike the spinal column parts found in a shipment of veal to Japan in January.

In a separate article, meatingplace.com also reported that Tyson has suffered a $127 million loss in its second quarter, compared to a net profit of $76 million a year ago. Oversupplies of all proteins, particularly beef and chicken, are blamed for the losses.

— compiled by Meghan Soderstrom, assistant editor, Angus Productions Inc.