April 20, 2004
US Cattle Group Blasts Creekstone's Mad Cow Test Plan
A U.S. cattle lobbying group said on Monday that attempts by Creekstone Farms Premium Beef Co. to conduct its own tests for mad cow disease were "disrupting" negotiations to reopen Japan's market to American beef.
On April 9, the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) denied a request by the Kansas-based firm that it be given permission to test all its slaughtered cattle for mad cow disease.
Japan, which has insisted on 100 percent testing of slaughtered U.S. cattle, is a major market for Creekstone. The company, which specializes in the export of specialty meat cuts such as tongue, liver, stomachs and other offal, is considering a lawsuit to overturn USDA's decision.
Jan Lyons, president of the National Cattlemen's Beef Association (NCBA), said any move by the private industry to conduct 100 percent testing "can disrupt negotiations with Japan that are ongoing right now."
USDA and NCBA have argued that Japan's demand for testing all 35 million cattle slaughtered each year in the United States is not necessary. That is because most cattle are under 30 months and not old enough to be affected by the disease.
Lyons said allowing one company to conduct testing would bring about a "domino effect" that would cost U.S. cattle ranchers $1 billion a year in added testing costs.
The cattle group wants USDA to maintain control of mad cow testing.
Bush administration officials depart for Japan on Thursday for weekend talks, aimed at reopening a $1.4 billion market for American beef. Beef exports from the U.S. totalled $3.8 billion in 2003.
U.S. consumer groups asked USDA to rethink its position on Monday.
"We find it incomprehensible that USDA would stand in the way of companies meeting consumer demand this way," wrote the Consumers Union and other groups in a letter to Agriculture Secretary Ann Veneman.
"Testing all cattle would be like checking all children in grammar school for Alzheimer's disease," said Dave Wood, chairman of the beef division at Harris Ranch Beef Co. in Fresno, California.
NCBA officials said they were confident that USDA would stick to its decision to prohibit companies from conducting mad cow disease tests. However, they pointed out that the publicity surrounding Creekstone's efforts has raised concerns.
Creekstone CEO John Stewart said his firm's decision to test all its slaughtered cattle was simply a marketing tool. "We have a customer asking for a product in a certain way," Stewart said.
USDA officials are hoping that as the United States normalizes beef shipments within North America, major Asian buyers like Japan and South Korea will be prompted to ease their trade bans.
Veneman confirmed on Monday that the United States would immediately begin allowing imports of bone-in beef from Canada. Previously, USDA has allowed boneless boxed beef and ground beef from Canada.
