ICON concerned about Canadian beef imports

A recent announcement that the 14th case of bovine spongiform encephalopathy (BSE) has been detected in native-born Canadian cattle has members of the Independent Cattlemen of Nebraska (ICON) concerned.

"ICON is also concerned with the protection of the United States cattleman, the U.S. consumer and residents of any foreign country purchasing beef produced in the United States," said Louis Day, ICON board director.

Day said Canada imposed feed bans in l997 that prohibit the grinding and feeding of other ruminants to cattle, but more than half of the Canadian cattle that have been found to be infected with BSE were born after the feed ban was put in place.              

He said that in November 2007, the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) implemented regulations that permit importation of live cattle from Canada if they were born after March 1, 1999.

Canada's latest BSE case was in a five-year-old Holstein cow from British Columbia born in 2003, Day said. As such, he said, her owners could have exported her to the United States as a live animal under the OTM (over 30 months) Rule, according to a news report from R-CALF United Stockgrowers of America.             

"ICON is concerned with the new BSE case and questions the security of Canada's food inspection agency," Day said.

"While we sympathize with Canada's producers, we do not want them to export their problems to the United States."  

Day said that it's obvious that the l997 feed ban was not fully implemented until at least 2003, and that puts thousands of Canadian animals in jeopardy.

He said that is unacceptable for ICON. 

"It not only would affect the U.S. consumers and the exported U.S. beef, but also threatens the American beef producer," Day said.         

He said he understands the lack of confidence other countries have in American beef when "truckload after truckload" of Canadian cattle are shipped into the United States to regional packing plants where the product is mixed in with disease-free American beef.            

Day and ICON officials are encouraging Congress to take measures offering the American consumer protection against the introduction of BSE into the U.S. cattle and beef market.

"Imported cattle from Canada need to be tested before entering the U.S. food supply -- either by federal officials at entry levels on the border or by all packing companies before slaughter," he said.             

Day said ICON also believes the quick implementation of mandatory country-of-origin labeling (M-COOL) will give consumers the opportunity to make an educated choice in the marketplace. 

"M-COOL's implementation will protect beef producers in the United States from contaminated blended product, which is currently untraceable," he said.