April 19, 2004
US Cattle Group Supports Creekstone's Mad Cow Test Plan
In a letter sent to U.S. Agriculture Secretary Ann Veneman Friday, R-CALF United Stockgrowers of America called on the U.S. Department of Agriculture to allow Creekstone Farms Premium Beef to test its beef products for bovine spongiform encephalopathy, or mad-cow disease.
"Responding to its customers, Creekstone Farms Premium Beef sought permission to test 100% of the cattle it processes, a request the USDA denied on April 8," a release announcing the letter said.
The letter from R-CALF USA President Leo McDonnell applauded Creekstone Farms and its entrepreneurial spirit.
"Creekstone is leading the beef processing industry into a new era - one that is predicated on meeting the needs and wants of its customers," the letter said.
"In so doing, Creekstone has discovered a reasonable, efficient and timely means for resuming export trade with Japan. Other like-minded meat processors are sure to follow if Creekstone's efforts attract financial rewards," the letter continued.
The letter stated: "The consequence of USDA denying Creekstone's request is to shield the less innovative, less nimble and less responsive beef processors from the competitive capacity of cutting-edge beef processors like Creekstone. USDA should not use its regulatory authority to hamstring market competition, particularly in this instance, because Creekstone intends to use identical BSE-testing procedures currently used by USDA."
Japan, the world's largest market for U.S. beef, has refused to lift its ban on imports. The ban has been in place since Dec. 23, when a Canadian dairy cow that had been imported into the U.S. in 2001, was found to be infected with BSE after it was slaughtered at a beef packing plant located at Moses Lake, Wash.
In a letter to the USDA dated April 2, Japan's Agriculture Minister Yoshiyuki Kamei wrote Japan cannot end its ban on imports of U.S. beef until the U.S. "implements the same measures as we do" to prevent BSE.
Prior to the ban, Japan imported more than $1 billion worth of U.S. beef annually.
