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Beef exports to Japan a fraction of pre-BSE levels due to lack of young beef
By JUDY MONCHUK
2006-04-16 14:34:00
CALGARY (CP) - A hesitation to buy into a birth registry for cattle has turned into a lost opportunity for producers who previously viewed Japan as a savior for beef exports.
More than three months after Japan lifted a ban on North American beef, Canada is shipping only a fraction of what it did prior to the discovery of mad cow disease in 2003.
"I wouldn't say we've blown it, but definitely we're not able to meet the demand," said Ted Haney of the Canada Beef Export Federation.
Haney said the Japanese would happily take Canadian beef from animals proven to be under 21 months of age, but not enough animals with documents proving their youth are being brought to market.
"It's obvious that the Canadian industry is finding it difficult to identify those animals in commercially significant volumes," said Haney.
About 20 tonnes of beef a week is being sent to Japan from the youngest animals, believed at lowest risk of developing bovine spongiform encephalopathy, the clinical term for mad cow.
Prior to the discovery of BSE in 2003, Canada was exporting 500 tonnes of meat to the Asian country. Meat packers would love to have more animals arrive for slaughter with birth certificates in tow, but that's not happening.
Canadian beef producers had hoped the booming economies of Pacific Rim countries would feed the long-term recovery of an industry which lost billions in exports when international markets slammed shut.
About 1.9 million animals have been voluntarily registered in the Canadian Cattle Identification Agency's federal database. But there is a long way to go.
About five million calves were born last spring and another six million calves are expected to be born over the next couple of months, animals which could be moving to market as early as the fall.
In Alberta, home to the bulk of Canada's beef herd, the provincial government has launched an advertising campaign to stress that having the birth dates of cattle easily accessible gives ranchers an advantage in the global marketplace.
"We're telling ranchers the world wants Canadian beef at their dinner table," said Alberta Agriculture Minister Doug Horner. "But they're demanding proof that the beef on their plates is from younger animals."
Alberta urges producers to voluntarily sign up their animals before registration becomes mandatory by April 2007. At that point, all animals slaughtered here will have to have proof of a birthday.
Feedlot operator Rick Paskal is frustrated with the number of producers who have been slow to buy in to the free online registration program. He suggests that Ottawa take some of the money it has set aside for export development to help the battered industry and offer cow-calf producers a one-time payment for registering their young animals, perhaps $5 a head.
"It's a no-brainer to me, it's something that has to be done," Paskal said from Lethbridge, Alta. "It's going to be our lifeline in years to come, this simple tool that we have in front of us, but we have to get everybody to do it."
Auctioneer Blair Vold said it's too early to expect the industry to have bought into the program, which has been operating for less than a year.
"I see by this fall you'll see feedlots demanding (the identification) and paying a little bit more for it," said Vold, whose auction mart in Ponoka is the largest in Canada. "That's when you're going to see it pop up more."
Vold said technology to read the identifying ear tags on the animals is being tested and refined. Still, the key is for producers to accept it's the way of the future.
"They have to sit back and realize we're in a different world in the cattle industry," said Vold. "We're going to have to be accountable for everything we produce and raise. We might as well get used to it. Consumers want to know everything about what's on their plate."
Producers are looking for a premium for getting their beef age verified, but a spokesman for one of the major packing plants says that may not be a long term benefit.
"Certain things are going to become the standard by which everyone who wants to do business in the international marketplace will have to adhere," said Robert Meijer of Cargill Foods.
"It's the new reality in the global market," Meijer said from Winnipeg. "You have to lead the way, you have to be ahead of the curve and be better than your competitors in another geography. This is going to be another tool for us succeed in that area."
By JUDY MONCHUK
2006-04-16 14:34:00
CALGARY (CP) - A hesitation to buy into a birth registry for cattle has turned into a lost opportunity for producers who previously viewed Japan as a savior for beef exports.
More than three months after Japan lifted a ban on North American beef, Canada is shipping only a fraction of what it did prior to the discovery of mad cow disease in 2003.
"I wouldn't say we've blown it, but definitely we're not able to meet the demand," said Ted Haney of the Canada Beef Export Federation.
Haney said the Japanese would happily take Canadian beef from animals proven to be under 21 months of age, but not enough animals with documents proving their youth are being brought to market.
"It's obvious that the Canadian industry is finding it difficult to identify those animals in commercially significant volumes," said Haney.
About 20 tonnes of beef a week is being sent to Japan from the youngest animals, believed at lowest risk of developing bovine spongiform encephalopathy, the clinical term for mad cow.
Prior to the discovery of BSE in 2003, Canada was exporting 500 tonnes of meat to the Asian country. Meat packers would love to have more animals arrive for slaughter with birth certificates in tow, but that's not happening.
Canadian beef producers had hoped the booming economies of Pacific Rim countries would feed the long-term recovery of an industry which lost billions in exports when international markets slammed shut.
About 1.9 million animals have been voluntarily registered in the Canadian Cattle Identification Agency's federal database. But there is a long way to go.
About five million calves were born last spring and another six million calves are expected to be born over the next couple of months, animals which could be moving to market as early as the fall.
In Alberta, home to the bulk of Canada's beef herd, the provincial government has launched an advertising campaign to stress that having the birth dates of cattle easily accessible gives ranchers an advantage in the global marketplace.
"We're telling ranchers the world wants Canadian beef at their dinner table," said Alberta Agriculture Minister Doug Horner. "But they're demanding proof that the beef on their plates is from younger animals."
Alberta urges producers to voluntarily sign up their animals before registration becomes mandatory by April 2007. At that point, all animals slaughtered here will have to have proof of a birthday.
Feedlot operator Rick Paskal is frustrated with the number of producers who have been slow to buy in to the free online registration program. He suggests that Ottawa take some of the money it has set aside for export development to help the battered industry and offer cow-calf producers a one-time payment for registering their young animals, perhaps $5 a head.
"It's a no-brainer to me, it's something that has to be done," Paskal said from Lethbridge, Alta. "It's going to be our lifeline in years to come, this simple tool that we have in front of us, but we have to get everybody to do it."
Auctioneer Blair Vold said it's too early to expect the industry to have bought into the program, which has been operating for less than a year.
"I see by this fall you'll see feedlots demanding (the identification) and paying a little bit more for it," said Vold, whose auction mart in Ponoka is the largest in Canada. "That's when you're going to see it pop up more."
Vold said technology to read the identifying ear tags on the animals is being tested and refined. Still, the key is for producers to accept it's the way of the future.
"They have to sit back and realize we're in a different world in the cattle industry," said Vold. "We're going to have to be accountable for everything we produce and raise. We might as well get used to it. Consumers want to know everything about what's on their plate."
Producers are looking for a premium for getting their beef age verified, but a spokesman for one of the major packing plants says that may not be a long term benefit.
"Certain things are going to become the standard by which everyone who wants to do business in the international marketplace will have to adhere," said Robert Meijer of Cargill Foods.
"It's the new reality in the global market," Meijer said from Winnipeg. "You have to lead the way, you have to be ahead of the curve and be better than your competitors in another geography. This is going to be another tool for us succeed in that area."
