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Tony Corbo, (202) 797-6548

USDA Wrong to Allow Increased Cattle Imports from Canada

The U.S. Department of Agriculture’s announcement that it intends to expand the scope of meat products and cattle that can be imported from Canada proves once again that the agency is more concerned about pleasing trading partners than protecting public health.

Trade in live cattle and beef from Canada has been restricted since May 2003, after the discovery of bovine spongiform encephalopathy (BSE), or mad cow disease. In January 2005, USDA allowed the importation of young (under 30 months) cattle and some beef products.

The plan released yesterday would expand the list of products allowed into the United States from “minimal risk regions.” The designation of minimal risk is determined by international standards on animal health set by a body called the World Animal Health Organization. USDA has been instrumental in the process of altering these standards to speed the re-opening of the U.S. market to cattle and beef from Canada.

There are several major problems with the plan proposed by USDA:

• Two cases of BSE have been found in Canada in animals born well after the Canada’s feed ban (rules restricting feeding of ruminant tissue to ruminants) was supposed prevent further spread of the disease. This calls into question USDA’s primary justification for allowing older cattle into the United States – their assertion that Canada’s “feed ban” is effective.

  Read our BSE Non-compliance Record Analysis

• It defies common sense to increase the import of cattle from a country known to have a higher prevalence of the disease when our own safeguards are not strong enough. The agency claims that U.S. regulations designed to protect the food supply from BSE, combined with Canada’s feed ban, means that there is little risk of introducing the disease into the U.S. food supply. Yet weaknesses in the domestic regulations, including removal of specified risk materials, exist (see BSE Non-compliance Record Analysis).
• Without country of origin labeling, consumers have no way to know if they are purchasing meat from Canadian cattle. If they have concerns about the adequacy of BSE rules, they have no information on which to act to protect themselves.

Importation of older live Canadian cattle should not resume until Canada has a better handle on the scope of its mad cow disease problem, Canada has achieved and documented full compliance with its feed rules, the United States has better safeguards in place to protect against the disease, and U.S. consumers have basic information about where their food comes from. We urge the USDA to drop this proposed change to the list of allowable imports.