March 23, 2010

 

Canadian rapeseed crushers aim to regain US access

 

 

Rapeseed crushers in Canada are working with the government to regain the confidence of the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA), which has refused rapeseed meal shipments from some of Canada's biggest plants.

 

Several of those plants - owned by Viterra Inc, Bunge Ltd and Archer Daniels Midland - are under increased scrutiny from the FDA because some shipments contained salmonella, which can cause food poisoning. However rapeseed meal is used as feed for animals, not human food.

 

The FDA has placed those plants on import-alert status, making it more difficult for those companies to deliver rapeseed meal to the US, the top export market.

 

The document will contain best management practices for rapeseed crushers in line with new feed-safety regulations that the FDA is developing, said Ken Stone, chairman of the Canadian Oilseed Processors Association and also Cargill's commercial manager of oilseed processing.

 

The FDA, which has said it will not change its zero tolerance for salmonella detection, has not said whether the document will make any difference to how it inspects Canadian rapeseed meal.

 

The FDA's acceptance of the document would also not allow plants to get off import-alert status more quickly, Stone said.

 

Canada's ambassador to the US, Gary Doer, said he is working closely with the rapeseed industry on the issue.

 

Exports of rapeseed meal to California have roughly fallen by half. Rapeseed meal is popular protein source for dairy cattle. Exporters shipped about 800,000 tonnes to the state last year, said Dave Hickling, vice-president of utilisation for the Canola Council.