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US Packers repeatedly violate BSE Rules

Mike

Well-known member
Twenty six out of the 37 U.S. meat packing facilities that have been given licenses to export to Japan repeatedly violated in 2004 and 2005 the U.S. BSE regulations such as the removal of risk material and determining the months-old age of cattle.

Japanese Communist Party House of Councilors member Kami Tomoko revealed this using the official records of the U.S. Department of Agriculture that she obtained during her study trip to the United States.

Those facilities that have been certified as exporters to Japan and found in violation by the USDA inspectors include Tyson Foods, Inc., Cargill Meat Solutions Corp. and, Swift & Company.

A Tyson Foods meat facility in Lexington, Nebraska, committed violations 13 times from February 2004 to January 2005. Tyson Foods, the USDA documents reported, committed violations 40 times at their nine facilities.

Those facilities violated regulations in such a manner that they did not follow guidelines program in removing risk material. The USDA also reported that preventive measures of these facilities were either ineffective or not implemented at all.

The fact that BSE regulations have been repeatedly violated at the facilities certified for domestic consumption clearly indicates the danger that such violations will be committed by the same facilities exporting meat to Japan.

In view of Prime Minister Koizumi Jun'ichiro's meeting with U.S. President George Bush planned for late in June, the Koizumi government is accelerating its move to resume the import of U.S. beef. The newly revealed record of violations increases the anxiety of Japanese consumers.

From Akahata
 
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Anonymous

Guest
6/12/2006 2:20:00 PM


US, S. Korea Still At Odds Over Several US Beef Plants



WASHINGTON (Dow Jones)--Negotiators are still unable to reach a deal to restart U.S. beef exports to South Korea because of the Asian country's rejection of a "handful" of U.S. plants, U.S. Department of Agriculture Secretary Mike Johanns said Monday.



Johanns told reporters the U.S. will demand that South Korea accept all U.S. beef processing plants that have passed U.S. audits as worthy to export to South Korea.



"We're not selling the merits of a given plant or a given company, we're selling the merits of the total system," Johanns said. "We don't want to send a signal to (South) Korea or any other trading partner that they can pick and choose (from within) the system."



Johanns said that any U.S. plant approved by USDA needs to be accepted by South Korea.



Nevertheless, Joe Meng, a vice president of the Arkansas-based Creekstone Farms Premium Beef LLC, said he received a list of the U.S. plants from which South Korea doesn't want to import. That list includes plants owned by Cargill Inc. (CRG.Xx), Swift & Company (SWT.Xx) and Tyson Foods Inc. (TSN), three of the largest U.S. beef producers.



Gary Mickelson, director of media relations for Tyson Fresh Meats said: "While there's a great deal of rumor and speculation, we haven't received any word from the South Korean or U.S. governments about the export status of any plant. We have great confidence in the safety of our products and look forward to the day when we can resume trade with South Korean customers."



Cargill Foods public affairs official Mark Klein said the issue at its Dodge City, Kan., plant was related to an earlier issue with certain bone fragments showing up in product delivered to Hong Kong.



The problem at Cargill's Schuyler, Neb., plant is linked to the possibility that the facility could be close enough to Canada that it could get and slaughter Canadian cattle, Klein said. However, the USDA says cattle under 30 months of age coming from Canada are safe, he said.



Sean McHugh, vice president of communications for Swift & Co., while not commenting on the situation at any of its facilities, said the status of beef trade with South Korea is contingent on getting an agreed-upon bone-defect criteria and acceptance of the USDA's inspection process. Non-acceptance of a single plant is a non-issue, he said.



Also, McHugh said, no list of accepted and non-accepted plants had been released.



The USDA is trying to achieve an agreement that's in the best interest of the whole U.S. industry, McHugh said.



South Korea banned U.S. beef in December 2003 after the first case of mad-cow disease, or bovine spongiform encephalopathy, was discovered in the U.S. Before the ban, the U.S. exported $815 million worth of beef to South Korea in 2003, according to USDA data.



South Korea recently conducted a two-week audit of 37 U.S. beef processing plants to see firsthand if they met standards for shipping beef to South Korea, which has pledged to initially only reopen its market to boneless cuts.



Johanns said Monday that South Korea's concerns over some of the 37 plants are only "minor."
 

Mike

Well-known member
Johanns told reporters the U.S. will demand that South Korea accept all U.S. beef processing plants that have passed U.S. audits as worthy to export to South Korea.

Kinda strange that when the small packer that sent the "Bone" to the Japs in January, they got "De-Listed" immediately, even though it was the FSIS inspectors that dropped the ball for not informing the plant of what was on the "Do Not Send List".

But when it comes to the "Big Boys" he goes to bat for them. Sickening.
 

Murgen

Well-known member
Didn't R-CALF predict importing Canadian cattle would cause problems re-opening our markets?

They sure did, they said it was because the USDA and the packers could not be trusted with their food safety safeguards. I guess someone is listening to RCALF. Seems ASIA is!
 

Econ101

Well-known member
Murgen said:
Didn't R-CALF predict importing Canadian cattle would cause problems re-opening our markets?

They sure did, they said it was because the USDA and the packers could not be trusted with their food safety safeguards. I guess someone is listening to RCALF. Seems ASIA is!

The goofballs at the USDA are the ones that need to listen.
 

Sandhusker

Well-known member
Murgen said:
Didn't R-CALF predict importing Canadian cattle would cause problems re-opening our markets?

They sure did, they said it was because the USDA and the packers could not be trusted with their food safety safeguards. I guess someone is listening to RCALF. Seems ASIA is!

Do you trust the USDA?
 

Murgen

Well-known member
Do you trust the USDA?

No I don't. With all the corrution and market power I read about on Ranchers, the only Americans I'm starting to trust is Econ 101 and yourself. (sometimes OT also)

All others seem to be wrong in their assesments and opinions.
 
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Anonymous

Guest
Murgen said:
Didn't R-CALF predict importing Canadian cattle would cause problems re-opening our markets?

They sure did, they said it was because the USDA and the packers could not be trusted with their food safety safeguards. I guess someone is listening to RCALF. Seems ASIA is!

Might it be that R-CALF has been right many more times than USDA regarding this whole BSE issue...Started from the Washington Cow when R-CALF was saying the cow was Canadian and USDA sat on the info for two weeks allowing all the markets to crash :roll:

Lets see R-CALF said that if the border opened- supply would overrun demand and prices would drop-- they did and it did and feeders are losing money again :roll:

R-CALF said that Canada had a feedban problem- which has been proven by 3 POST feedban second or third generation BSE cattle found in Canada :roll:

R-CALF said all along that negotiators were privately telling them that one of the major holdups in reopening US trade with Asia (including Japan) was that we were importing Canadian cattle and beef- USDA refused to admit it, because it would show they erred again...But now the Asians are admitting it.....

etc., etc., etc....

Most of their "sound science" has had huge holes blown in it-- they're even down to now saying the US cases were "spontaneous"-- which means "we ain't got any damn idea whats happening" :wink:

Which makes me wonder how right USDA was on dropping what they called their #1 barrier to keep out and prevent the spread of BSE- their in depth plan which banned all imports from BSE countries :???:
 

Murgen

Well-known member
OT, you are completly right on all your points.

If I were Japan/Korea/China, I wouldn't buy beef from the US either, it's not sounding like a very safe product!
 
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Anonymous

Guest
Murgen said:
OT, you are completly right on all your points.

If I were Japan/Korea/China, I wouldn't buy beef from the US either, it's not sounding like a very safe product!

So then you agree that the US should not be importing from Canada- eh....Since Canada has many more cases in a herd 1/10th the size- 3 of which are post feed ban and USDA and CFIA are joined at the hip with the Packer/AMI groups with this "sound science" they've magically pulled out of their hats......

So if US beef is not very safe- what does that make Canadian- Perilous- threatening- what? :???:

But I can see with USDA's track record why these Asian nations are hesitant.....Especially when the US courts ruled that USDA decisions, reasoning, or facts cannot be challenged......
 

Murgen

Well-known member
I believe in giving the customer what they want, they want the US to test. Or at least make sure there is no bone-in.

They want all the age verified they can get from Canada, so as long as the US is importing from Canada, the US should test.

I wonder what the difference is? Maybe if you guaranteed them all the beef you shipped them was age verified Canadian, they would buy!
 

Econ101

Well-known member
Murgen said:
Do you trust the USDA?

No I don't. With all the corrution and market power I read about on Ranchers, the only Americans I'm starting to trust is Econ 101 and yourself. (sometimes OT also)

All others seem to be wrong in their assesments and opinions.

Injustice is memorable.
 

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