Will cattle prices fall because of the mad cow disease in Ca?

springvalley · #21 04/30/12, 02:01 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by haypoint

Interesting how the NEWS spins this.
USDA policy is to just check a few cows, generally those that are showing signs of possible Mad Cow. It is very rare that this cow, that was walking, eating and producing just fine.
I know of a big slaughter plant near Green Bay, WI that takes in hundreds of old milk cows every day. I know that is they can walk to the killing floor, they are used for human consumption. But this cow went to a rendering operation instead? I wonder why. I wonder how many of the millions of old dairy cows, showing no signs of Mad Cow do get into the human food chain? Healthy old dairy cows rarely go to be rendered.

From what I understand the cow was doing well then died, that is why it was hauled to the rendering plant. But I`m not sure , as the news has a way of reporting things wrong. > Marc

haypoint · #22 04/30/12, 07:46 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by rancher1913

how much you want to bet "premise id" comes back to life now.

Animal ID Plan Sent to White House Following Mad Cow Find

By Alan Bjerga, Bloomberg

Businessweek.com

April 27, 2012

A proposal to strengthen the tracking of U.S. cattle has been sent to the White House for a fast-track review after a case of mad cow disease was discovered in California and spurred calls for a more stringent system.

"We have a lot of confidence in a rule we think will work," Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack told reporters today in Washington. He said he hopes the Office of Management and Budget will approve the new animal-identification plan quickly.

Critics including Representative Rosa DeLauro, Democrat of Connecticut, have said the discovery of the first U.S. case of mad cow disease since 2006, announced by the government on April 24, points to the need for a more effective livestock-tracking system.

haypoint · #23 05/07/12, 07:02 PM

More NEWS:

South Korean Delegates Tour Central Valley After Mad Cow Scare

By KSEE News

KSEE.com

May 4, 2012

A delegation from South Korea is set for another day of visits to rendering plants and dairy farms in the valley. They'll be here through the weekend. South Korean media from Los Angeles have been following the country's Chief Inspection Officer.

This is all about winning over one of America's biggest trading partners. South Korea is the 4th largest buyer of U.S. beef and it's a half a billion dollar industry. There were concerns when news of mad cow disease or BSE broke here in the valley. The USDA says this is a routine tour. The Koreans visited in 2003 when another case of mad cow came up.

Last week two of Korea's largest retailers pulled U.S. beef off the shelves. But in the last few days, one of the companies started selling it again. "We've seen a spike in purchasing of beef in Korea over last several days after a pause," said USDA Spokesperson Matt Merrick.

Veterinarian Jere Dick added, "The standard in the US meet and exceed the World Health Organizations standards. The Korean delegation has been pleased with the information they've received so far."

The lead veterinarian says the U.S. tests beef at a rate 10 times that of what international standards call for. In the last year there have been 29 cases of mad cow disease in the world.