News Update

News Update
Sept. 22, 2006

Mandatory Price Reporting Approved by Senate

The U.S. Senate has passed legislation that will effectively reauthorize Mandatory Price Reporting (MPR) for four more years, through Sept. 30, 2010, the National Cattlemen’s Beef Association (NCBA) reported.

The legislation, which passed the U.S. House of Representatives last year, requires meat packers to report to the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) Agricultural Marketing Service (AMS) daily price and volume information on negotiated and non-negotiated purchases of cattle and boxed beef sales. According to NCBA, companies are also required to report beef exports and imports. The Mandatory Price Reporting law expired Sept. 30, 2005, after the Senate was initially unable to agree to the bill passed by the House.

Mandatory price reports are available online at the AMS web site, at www.ams.usda.gov/LSMNpubs/index.htm.

NFU Requests Smithfield Investigation

The National Farmers Union (NFU) Wednesday requested a Department of Justice investigation and analysis of Smithfield Foods Inc.’s announced purchase of Premium Standard Farms. NFU said the move would put both consumers and independent livestock producers at a disadvantage by increasing concentration in the livestock industry, while lessening competition.

NFU President Tom Buis said the matter also involved the cattle industry.

“Both Smithfield and Premium Standard Farms also have extraordinary market influence via multiple relationships in the beef industry,” Buis said. “I am convinced that any fair analysis and investigation of these business links will reveal that the proposed sale raises, at the very least, serious concerns about added concentration in the beef and pork industries.”

House Passes Immigration Measures

The House of Representatives passed three measures addressing immigration policy, according to the American Meat Institute (AMI).

AMI reports the “Community Protection Act of 2006,” passed by a vote of 328 to 95. The bill would restore the Secretary of Homeland Security’s authority to detain dangerous aliens, to ensure the removal of deportable criminal aliens, and combat alien gang crime.

The “Immigration Law Enforcement Act of 2006,” passed by a vote of 277 to 140, affirms the authority of state and local law enforcement to assist in the enforcement of immigration laws, to provide for effective prosecution of alien smugglers, and to reform immigration litigation procedures.

The “Border Tunnel Prevention Act of 2006,” passed by a vote of 422 to 0, according to AMI. The bill prohibits the unauthorized construction, financing or permitting the construction or use of a tunnel or subterranean passageway between the United States and another country.

With few legislative business days remaining before the November election, it is not clear if the Senate will consider the three measures, the AMI release notes.

Source of E. coli Contamination Remains Elusive

As of Wednesday, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) had reported 146 persons in 23 states infected with the strain of E. coli O157:H7 associated with fresh spinach, a Food Systems Insider article reports.

The CDC reports that 52% of the people infected were hospitalized, 16% developed a type of kidney failure called hemolytic-uremic syndrome and one has died.

The hospitalization rate and incidence of kidney failure are higher than normal in E. coli outbreaks, leading officials to suspect a more virulent strain.

Beef Demand Increases in Japan

Demand for U.S. beef is continuing to increase in Japan, the U.S. Meat Export Federation (USMEF) announced.

The country’s fast-food chain Yoshinoya D&D Co., resumed serving its popular beef bowls earlier this week, and U.S. beef sales resumed in the Hokkaido supermarket chain, Cowboy. According to USMEF, the latest consumer tracking survey conducted last week shows more than 51.9% of Japanese consumers agree with their government’s decision to resume U.S. beef imports, while 54.5% said they would order U.S. beef in restaurants and 50.5% would purchase product at supermarkets.

— compiled by Crystal Albers, associate editor, Angus Productions Inc.