waterloo_boy
Member
canada news
Friday, Jul 22, 2005
Canadian cattlemen vow to fight extra inspections on shipments to Montana
EDMONTON (CP) - Additional inspections of Canadian cattle announced this week by Montana Gov. Brian Schweitzer are protectionist and politically self-serving, Canada's largest producer group charged Friday.
Shipments of live Canadian cattle started rolling across the Canada-U.S. border again earlier this week after a U.S. appeal court overturned a temporary injunction that blocked the border from reopening as scheduled back in March.
Schweitzer ordered government veterinarians Thursday to inspect cattle destined for Montana feedlots to ensure they're younger than 30 months, not pregnant and have a brand identifying them as Canadian - measures he said could cost up to $5 per head for the owners of the animals.
"This is disappointing, because this is a duplication of all the things the Canadian Food Inspection Agency and the U.S. Department of Agriculture are already doing," said John Masswohl, director of international relations for the Canadian Cattlemen's Association in Ottawa.
But it's not unexpected, he added.
"What we have felt all along, is that as we started to resume trade with the U.S., there would always be those people opposed to that and they would switch tactics and find new ways to restrict trade," Masswohl said.
"This just reinforces our resolve to build up our beef processing industry in Canada to be less reliant on shipping live animals into the U.S."
Schweitzer maintains he's taking the extra measures to ensure Canadian cattle coming into his state are free of mad cow disease.
The extra steps are being applauded by the state's own cattle industry, which has seen prices soar since the flow of Canadian cattle to the U.S. was cut off in May 2003, when the first Alberta cow tested positive for bovine spongiform encephalopathy (BSE).
The Canadian Cattlemen's Association worries the cost per head could go much higher than $5, depending on whether veterinarians will require shipments of Canadian cattle to be unloaded before they're inspected.
Masswohl said if the new measures are strictly limited to cattle whose end destination is Montana, the state's new rules may have a very limited effect on Canadian producers.
The association is still trying to determine whether the same inspections would be performed on cattle simply being shipped through Montana to slaughter facilities in other states.
That would be a much bigger worry for Canadian producers, Masswohl suggested, because it could make it harder to ship cattle to slaughterhouses in neighbouring states such as Colorado, Washington and Idaho.
"Anything that happens that limits the logistical options almost by definition increases costs and then makes it less attractive to ship Canadian cattle into the U.S.," Masswohl said.
Schweitzer said he will urge governors in other states to do the same thing.
Masswohl said Canadian producers are counting on an American slaughter industry so starved for Canadian cattle that it would be prepared to fight similar measures in places like Nebraska, North Dakota and Wyoming.
Officials with Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada are also seeking to clarify Montana's new rules.
The U.S. Department of Agriculture is questioning the legality of the governor's order.
Terri Teuber, a spokeswoman for the USDA in Washington, said Friday that agency attorneys had reviewed Schweitzer's order.
"We don't believe the state has the authority to charge a fee due to the burden it would cause on foreign commerce," she said. "With that said, we've not yet seen any proposed regulations or guidelines they intend to follow to conduct the inspections."
Schweitzer dismissed the legal concerns, saying, "We thank them for their advice, but meanwhile we will protect the interests of consumers and the cattle industry in Montana."
Teuber said the USDA believes any state order that would require ranchers to pay an additional fee is inappropriate.
© The Canadian Press, 2005
http://www.mytelus.com/news/article.do?pageID=canada_home&articleID=1986898
Friday, Jul 22, 2005
Canadian cattlemen vow to fight extra inspections on shipments to Montana
EDMONTON (CP) - Additional inspections of Canadian cattle announced this week by Montana Gov. Brian Schweitzer are protectionist and politically self-serving, Canada's largest producer group charged Friday.
Shipments of live Canadian cattle started rolling across the Canada-U.S. border again earlier this week after a U.S. appeal court overturned a temporary injunction that blocked the border from reopening as scheduled back in March.
Schweitzer ordered government veterinarians Thursday to inspect cattle destined for Montana feedlots to ensure they're younger than 30 months, not pregnant and have a brand identifying them as Canadian - measures he said could cost up to $5 per head for the owners of the animals.
"This is disappointing, because this is a duplication of all the things the Canadian Food Inspection Agency and the U.S. Department of Agriculture are already doing," said John Masswohl, director of international relations for the Canadian Cattlemen's Association in Ottawa.
But it's not unexpected, he added.
"What we have felt all along, is that as we started to resume trade with the U.S., there would always be those people opposed to that and they would switch tactics and find new ways to restrict trade," Masswohl said.
"This just reinforces our resolve to build up our beef processing industry in Canada to be less reliant on shipping live animals into the U.S."
Schweitzer maintains he's taking the extra measures to ensure Canadian cattle coming into his state are free of mad cow disease.
The extra steps are being applauded by the state's own cattle industry, which has seen prices soar since the flow of Canadian cattle to the U.S. was cut off in May 2003, when the first Alberta cow tested positive for bovine spongiform encephalopathy (BSE).
The Canadian Cattlemen's Association worries the cost per head could go much higher than $5, depending on whether veterinarians will require shipments of Canadian cattle to be unloaded before they're inspected.
Masswohl said if the new measures are strictly limited to cattle whose end destination is Montana, the state's new rules may have a very limited effect on Canadian producers.
The association is still trying to determine whether the same inspections would be performed on cattle simply being shipped through Montana to slaughter facilities in other states.
That would be a much bigger worry for Canadian producers, Masswohl suggested, because it could make it harder to ship cattle to slaughterhouses in neighbouring states such as Colorado, Washington and Idaho.
"Anything that happens that limits the logistical options almost by definition increases costs and then makes it less attractive to ship Canadian cattle into the U.S.," Masswohl said.
Schweitzer said he will urge governors in other states to do the same thing.
Masswohl said Canadian producers are counting on an American slaughter industry so starved for Canadian cattle that it would be prepared to fight similar measures in places like Nebraska, North Dakota and Wyoming.
Officials with Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada are also seeking to clarify Montana's new rules.
The U.S. Department of Agriculture is questioning the legality of the governor's order.
Terri Teuber, a spokeswoman for the USDA in Washington, said Friday that agency attorneys had reviewed Schweitzer's order.
"We don't believe the state has the authority to charge a fee due to the burden it would cause on foreign commerce," she said. "With that said, we've not yet seen any proposed regulations or guidelines they intend to follow to conduct the inspections."
Schweitzer dismissed the legal concerns, saying, "We thank them for their advice, but meanwhile we will protect the interests of consumers and the cattle industry in Montana."
Teuber said the USDA believes any state order that would require ranchers to pay an additional fee is inappropriate.
© The Canadian Press, 2005
http://www.mytelus.com/news/article.do?pageID=canada_home&articleID=1986898
this sort of BS by politicians DRIVES ME NUTS!!! 