News Update
March 9, 2011

Auxiliary Scholarships Available for Junior Angus Members

The American Angus Auxiliary announces that it will award $12,000 in scholarships in 2011 to the top five male and top five female applicants selected from finalists chosen in each applicant’s home state. Each state auxiliary is eligible to submit one male and one female application to the national contest. The winners will be announced during the closing ceremonies of the National Junior Angus Show (NJAS) in Harrisburg, Pa., July 15, 2011. The five finalists for the Miss American Angus contest are selected from the top national female applicants.

The application for American Angus Auxiliary Scholarships is now available online. Interested junior Angus members may download the application, access directions and find general information by visiting www.angusauxiliary.com/scholarships/index.html. The postmark for applications from the state contact is May 1, 2011. For specific state and local Auxiliary scholarship deadlines and information, visit the Auxiliary website or contact your state or regional Angus Auxiliary.

Additional questions about the American Angus Auxiliary scholarships can be directed to Anne Lampe, Auxiliary scholarship chair, at 5201 E. Rd. 110, Scott City, KS 67871; phone: 620-872-3915, or alampe@wbsnet.org.

— Release by the American Angus Auxiliary.

NCBA Supports 27 Senators’ Call for Science-Based Trade Agreement with Japan

U.S. President Barack Obama received a letter from 27 U.S. Senators March 8, 2011, offering support of the administration’s efforts to expand the presence of U.S. businesses and exports in the Asia-Pacific region through the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP). Most recently, Japan expressed interest in joining the TPP, causing the policymakers to extend cautious optimism to the president. First of all, the senators noted the importance of expanding market access into important economies such as Japan, but they also referred to the history of the U.S.-Japan trade relationship.

“It is also encouraging that the leaders of the Japanese government have expressed their interest in joining the TPP and thus eliminating their tariff and non-tariff trade barriers to U.S. goods and services,” the senators penned. “However, given Japan’s historical intransigence in allowing market access for American agricultural goods, we write to express reservations regarding Japan’s inclusion in these negotiations until certain conditions are met. In addition to prohibitively high tariffs on many agricultural goods, Japan has discriminated against U.S. beef imports with restrictions that are inconsistent with international standards and not based on scientific criteria.”

Japan closed its market to U.S. beef in December of 2003, after the discovery of a Canadian-born cow infected with bovine spongiform encephalopathy (BSE) in the United States. At that time, Japan was the largest export market for U.S. beef, valued at $1.4 billion. Since then, Japan has had restrictions in place on U.S. beef imports and currently only allows imports of beef from cattle aged 20 months and younger. National Cattlemen’s Beef Association (NCBA) Manager of Legislative Affairs Kent Bacus said the restrictions put U.S. cattlemen and women at a competitive disadvantage without any science-based rationale.

“The United States hasn’t taken this lightly. We have multiple safeguards currently in place that have prevented BSE from taking hold in our country,” said Bacus. “The trade barriers Japan has in place on U.S. beef appear to be motivated by something other than science.”

The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS) has aggressively enhanced its BSE surveillance system since 1990, testing at levels 40 times higher than recommended by the World Organization for Animal Health (OIE). As a result, out of a U.S. cattle inventory numbering nearly 100 million head every year, there have only been three confirmed cases of BSE since 2003. In contrast, Japan, with an annual cattle inventory of only 4.5 million head, has had 36 cases of BSE since 2003. Because of these efforts, the United States is classified as a controlled risk country by the OIE, which indicates that U.S. beef products are completely safe for export and consumption. 

“If Japan asks for inclusion in the TPP negotiations, we encourage you to press Japanese leaders to immediately relax its restrictions on U.S. beef to be fully consistent with OIE guidelines and reopen its market,” the senators penned. “At the very least, Japan should agree to immediately relax its age restrictions to 30 months and address other issues necessary to achieve a commercially-viable, science-based import protocol, while also laying a clear pathway for eventual full OIE compliance. Likewise, we would have serious reservations with any TPP agreement submitted to Congress that includes Japan if it has not made commitments to fully complete this process, as well as eliminate tariff and non-tariff barriers on its TPP partners’ agricultural exports.” 

— Release by NCBA.

FAO-OIE Team in North Korea to Help With FMD

A team of animal health specialists from FAO and the OIE has arrived in North Korea to assist veterinary authorities there in responding to outbreaks of foot-and-mouth disease (FMD) among pigs and cattle.

The group consists of a veterinarian specializing in FMD and transboundary animal diseases, a logistics officer and a laboratory technician fielded by FAO, along with a veterinarian specialist in disease management from OIE.

Democratic People’s Republic of Korea (DPRK) veterinary officials are also participating in the mission, which is a fully collaborative effort between North Korea and the two organizations.

The aim of the mission is to assess the situation on the ground in order to provide situation-specific guidance and technical assistance to North Korean veterinary officials to help them contain outbreaks and stop further spread of the disease.

The FAO-OIE team will also help the DPRK with longer-term prevention planning. For example, testing samples of the virus involved in the outbreaks to acquire a precise understanding of its genetic makeup will allow North Korea to identify the most appropriate and effective vaccines to use.

The mission, which started Feb. 28, will last approximately 10-14 days.

FMD is a highly contagious disease affecting cattle, buffalo, sheep, goats, swine and other cloven-hoofed animals. It does not pose a direct health threat to humans, but affected animals become too weak to be used to plough the soil or reap harvests, and farmers cannot sell the milk they produce, which can severely affect household food security.

— Release by OIE.

Kansas Firm Recalls Ground Beef Products Due To Possible E. coli O157:H7

Creekstone Farms Premium Beef, an Arkansas City, Kan., establishment, is recalling approximately 14,158 pounds of ground beef products that may be contaminated with E. coli O157:H7, the USDA Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS) announced March 8.

For a list of the recalled products, click here.

Each case label bears the establishment number “EST. 27” inside the USDA mark of inspection. These products were produced Feb. 22, 2011, and were shipped to firms in Arizona, California, Georgia, Indiana, Iowa, Missouri, North Carolina, Ohio, Pennsylvania and Washington for further processing and/or distribution. It is important to note that the above listed products may have been repackaged into consumer-size packages and sold under different retail brand names. When available, the retail distribution list(s) will be posted at www.fsis.usda.gov/FSIS_Recalls/Open_Federal_Cases/index.asp.

FSIS and the company have received no reports of illnesses associated with consumption of these products. Individuals concerned about an illness should contact a healthcare provider. Anyone with questions regarding the recall should contact the company’s Vice President of Marketing, Jim Rogers at 620-741-3352.

— Release by USDA FSIS.

— Compiled by Mathew Elliott, assistant editor, Angus Productions Inc.