April 30, 2001

Another Try for $9 Billion.  American Farm Bureau Federation President Bob Stallman has sent another letter to Congress urging support for $9 billion in federal income assistance for farmers in fiscal 2001. AFBF and 22 other farm groups initially made the funding request in February when Congress began reviewing the federal budget. 

Young Farmers Urged to Provide Information. An effort now underway to gather information about young farmers and ranchers and their opinions is important to the future of agriculture, according to Lynn Cornwell, president of the National Cattlemen's Beef Association (NCBA). The effort is being conducted as an internet survey by the Farm Credit System Foundation, Inc., and is worth the time of every young cattleman or woman, Cornwell said. 

Computer Program Aims at More Beef Use. Greater utilization of often overlooked beef muscles is the objective of a new checkoff-funded CD ROM from the National Cattlemen's Beef Association (NCBA). The interactive computer disk helps beef processors, retailers, restaurant operators and others see how utilization of individual muscles within the chuck and round can improve the value of the entire beef carcass. 

ACGA Goes for More CRP, FOR Reactivation.  The American Corn Growers Association (ACGA) told the House Agriculture Committee to increase the statutory acreage cap for the Conservation Reserve Program (CRP) from 36.4 million acres to at least 40 million acres. Their farm bill proposal also would allow the Secretary of Agriculture to reinstate the Farmer Owned Reserve and provide for addition grain reserves for the nation's strategic energy needs, such as ethanol and bio-diesel. 

Error Found in Hog Price Report.  USDA's Agricultural Marketing Service (AMS) has announced that an error occurred Monday, April 23, in the reporting of the weighted average price for hogs in the Iowa-Southern Minnesota region. The price reported was $62.45, while the actual price was $63.94. The National Pork Producers Council says due to this discrepancy, producers whose marketing contracts were tied to this report and who delivered hogs on that day should carefully evaluate the payments they received. The entire revised report can be found on the USDA-AMS web site at http://www.ams.usda.gov/mnarchive/2001/apr/04%2D23%2D2001/lm%5Fhg205.txt. Or, pork producers can check the National Pork Producers Council (NPPC) website under news for a direct link to the AMS revision. Finally, producers without Internet access are welcome to call NPPC and request a copy by mail or fax. 

U.S., Canada Warn of Poisonous Plant.  The U.S. Food and Drug Administration in conjunction with the Canadian Food Inspection Agency is warning consumers not to consume a poisonous flowering perennial plant known as Aconitum carmichaelii ‘Arendsii', commonly called Autumn Monkshood. Valleybrook Gardens, Ltd., a Canadian nursery located in British Columbia is known to have distributed the plants with the incorrect labels to other nurseries in British Columbia, Washington State and Idaho, but full distribution is not known at this time. The packages were mistakenly labeled with the statement, "all parts of this plant are tasty in soup," instead of indicating that the plant is poisonous. All parts of this plant are poisonous. Cooking will not detoxify the toxic compounds. The poisonous element is known as aconitine. Symptoms of aconitine poisoning are burning or tingling in the mouth or tongue, tingling in the four limbs, generalized muscular weakness, gastrointestinal distress and cardiovascular complications. Death could occur due to ventricular arrhythmias (irregular heart beat) or direct paralysis of the heart. The plants are packaged in blue plastic pots, 11 cm x 11 cm (approximately 4½ inches x 4½ inches). The pots are shipped in flats of eight or 16. The label reads in part, "Heritage Premier - Autumn Monkshood- Perennial - Aconitum carmichaelii ‘Arendsii'. This late flowering selection has incredible, tall spikes of deep violet-blue, hooded flowers. Attractive dark green glossy foliage..." Distribution started on March 4, 2001, and the first plants had been received by accounts in mid-April. Approximately 1,500 plants are believed to have been sold so far. 

Whitman Touts First 100 Days at EPA.  Environmental Protection Agency Administrator Christine Whitman has cited agricultural issues among her list of accomplishments during the first 100 days of the Bush administration. Whitman affirmed a rule to protect America's wetlands by more closely regulating construction activities in wetlands. This rule will help prevent loss of wetlands to construction practices that were being conducted under a "loophole" in regulations previously promulgated. In response to numerous requests from the agricultural community, the administrator extended by 75 days the public comment period for the rule on concentrated animal feeding operations (CAFOs). Whitman also noted that EPA achieved agreement among a broad group of stakeholders to an amended consent decree in a case concerning the use of pesticides in farming practices. The changes will guarantee new opportunities for public participation and additional external review of critical pesticide decisions aimed at protecting health and safety. To help prevent a repeat of last summer's high spike in fuel costs in Chicago and Milwaukee, the Administrator directed that refiners blending gasoline for sale in those two cities may use increased amounts of ethanol. To better protect public health and confidence in America's food supply, the Whitman said EPA will no longer approve a biotech food product – StarLink corn -- for animal consumption unless it can also be safely approved for human consumption. 

USDA Seeks Comments on Watermelon Order.  USDA's Agricultural Marketing Service is seeking comments on a proposal to amend the watermelon research and promotion order. Under the proposed amendment, watermelon wholesalers, fresh-cut processors, and anyone who arranges the sale or transfer of watermelons, would be required to pay assessments to the National Watermelon Promotion Board in addition to the producers, first handlers, and importers who already pay assessments under the program. The assessment would be 2 cents per hundredweight of watermelons handled, including any watermelons handled domestically after their importation. The purpose of the proposed amendment is to treat all handlers of watermelons equally, to decrease administrative costs under the program, and to increase assessment income. After receiving and reviewing comments on this amendment, AMS will conduct a national referendum to determine if the watermelon industry will approve it. In addition to the individuals currently covered by the plan, the persons proposed to be covered by the plan will be eligible to vote in the referendum. Currently watermelon producers of 10 or more acres, first handlers, and importers of 150,000 pounds or more of watermelons annually are covered by the plan. A proposed rule containing the amendment will be published in today's (April 30) Federal Register. Comments must be received by June 29, 2001. Comments should be mailed in triplicate to the Docket Clerk, USDA/AMS Stop 0244, 1400 Independence Ave. S.W., Washington, D.C. 20250-0244; telephone (888) 720-9917 (toll free); fax (202) 205-2800; or e-mail to: malinda.farmer@usda.gov. For further information, contact Kathie Birdsell at the above address, telephone, or fax number or by e-mail to: kathie.birdsell@usda.gov. 

Sweet Onion Vote Begins.  USDA says sweet onion growers in the Walla Walla Valley of southeastern Washington state and northeastern Oregon will vote today through May 19 on whether to continue their federal marketing order. The order requires that a continuance referendum be held every six years. To be eligible to vote, growers must have produced sweet onions within the designated production area of southeastern Washington and northeastern Oregon during the period June 1, 2000, through March 30, 2001. For the order to continue, at least two-thirds of the growers voting in the referendum, or growers representing at least two-thirds of the volume of these onions, must vote in favor of the order. Notice of the referendum appeared in Friday's Federal Register. USDA's Agricultural Marketing Service is mailing ballots and voting instructions to all growers of record. Eligible growers not receiving ballots may request them from Dennis West, USDA/AMS, Suite 385, 1220 SW Third Ave., Portland OR 97204; tel. (503) 326-2724 or fax (503) 326-7440. 

Animal Import Rule Amendments Proposed.  USDA is proposing to amend its animal import regulations. USDA has determined that cattle imported from Australia and New Zealand present a negligible risk of introducing brucellosis into the United States and that cattle imported from Australia present a negligible risk of introducing tuberculosis into the United States. Due to this finding, USDA is proposing to ease the import restrictions on those two countries by waiving the respective testing requirements. For further information, contact Glen Garris, supervisory staff officer, regionalization evaluation services staff, national center for import/export, veterinary services, USDA, APHIS, 4700 River Road, Unit 38, Riverdale, Md. 20737-1231, (301) 734-4356. The proposed rule was published in the April 20 Federal Register. APHIS documents published in the Federal Register and related information, including the names of organizations and individuals who have commented on APHIS dockets, are available on the Internet at http://www.aphis.usda.gov/ppd/rad/webrepor.html. Consideration will be given to comments received on or before June 19. Please send an original and three copies to Docket No. 99-071-1, Regulatory Analysis and Development, PPD, APHIS, Suite 3CO3, 4700 River Road, Unit 118, Riverdale, Md. 20737-1238. 

Rice Loses Market Dominance in Saudi Arabia.  REUTERS reports that U.S. long grain parboiled rice has lost market dominance in Saudi Arabia in favour of raw and aromatic rice from India, Pakistan and Thailand. "The market share of U.S long-grain parboiled rice has been shrinking for some years now," Adel al-Saleh, General Manager of al-Muhaidib Grain, told the news agency on the sidelines at an aromatics rice conference in Dubai. Saleh, whose firm imports about 22% of the kingdom's 600,000 metric tonnes of rice per year, said Indian and Pakistani Basmati rice now accounts for 70% of Saudi Arabia's total rice imports. 
 

April 27, 2001

Corn Growers Push Ethanol Use.  The nation's corn growers not surprisingly want ethanol to take a leading role in emerging national energy policy, because it delivers energy security, promotes environmental stewardship and revitalizes rural communities. Lake Preston, SD, farmer Lynn Jensen, chairman of the National Corn Growers Association (NCGA), testified before the House Agriculture Committee's Subcommittee on Conservation, Credit, Rural Development and Research. 

Sugar Producers Take Their Turn at the Table. The nation's sugar producers want a non-recourse loan program continued for sugar as for other commodities and a retention of the Secretary of Agriculture's authority to limit imports under a tariff-rate quota system. In testimony before the House Agriculture Committee, Ray VanDriessche, Bay City, MI, farmer and president of the American Sugarbeet Growers Association, said policy objectives were needed to "protect taxpayers by generating all sugar producer income from the marketplace," not relying on government for income. 

Consumers Don't Practice Food Safety.  Nearly three-fourths of the U.S. population violates recommended food safety practices in their own kitchens, according to a study conducted in 2000 by Audits International. The most common mistake is a failure to wash hands before handling food. Other mistakes include improper food preparation techniques, cross contamination, improper cooling of leftovers and not cooking food to the proper temperature. 

New Hampshire Wants Out of Octane Provisions.  New Hampshire Gov. Jeanne Shaheen has issued an executive order requesting a waiver from the clean octane provisions of the federal Clean Air Act and has decided not to seek a statewide ban on the gasoline additive MTBE. The Renewable Fuels Association has asked Shaheen to reconsider. 

FMD Compensation Assured.  U.S. farmers would be compensated by the government if their livestock were to be hit with an outbreak of foot-and-mouth disease, Agriculture Secretary Ann Veneman said. BLOOMBERG NEWS reports that under an agreement between the USDA and the Office of Management and Budget, Veneman said there will be written policy for farmers whose herds were infected by the highly contagious disease. Animals with confirmed cases would be destroyed. "The decision's been made that we'd pay for the animals," Veneman said during an appearance before the House Agriculture Appropriations subcommittee. She testified on the USDA's proposed $63 billion budget for the year that begins Oct. 1. Veneman said she had no estimate for how much the compensation program would cost. She said the government would spend whatever it takes to eradicate the disease. The government has been on heightened alert for foot-and- mouth disease since the United Kingdom reported an outbreak on Feb. 21. Since then the disease has spread to Ireland, France and the Netherlands. The last outbreak of the disease in the United States was in 1929. 

Ohio Farmers Go on Biotech Offensive. U.S., Canada Officially Agree on Potatoes.  U.S. and Canadian agriculture officials officially have announced an agreement to allow the movement of potatoes grown from Prince Edward Island (PEI), Canada under certain agreed conditions. These conditions apply only to the 2000 PEI potato crop and are designed to mitigate the risk of spreading potato wart disease. Under terms accepted by the USDA and the Canadian Food Inspection Agency (CFIA), a mutually acceptable work plan has been developed and agreed upon that will allow potato shipments within Canada this week. Exports to the U.S. could begin as early as April 30. The agreement follows the completion of a scientific risk analysis and applies only to the 2000 PEI potato crop. The movement of potatoes could be allowed into the U.S. only from certain areas, under specified conditions, and meet Canada's most stringent cleanliness standards. 

NFU Opposes Estate Tax Repeal.  National Farmers Union officials have joined North Dakota Democratic Sens. Kent Conrad and Byron Dorgan "to dispel the myth that repeal of the estate tax will help preserve family farms." The estate tax rarely applies to family farmers and ranchers and is not the cause of the liquidation of farm and ranch operations, says NFU. "It is simply not true that family farms are being lost because of estate tax obligations," said Leland Swenson, NFU president. "This is a tax break for the extremely wealthy. If we spend this time providing tax breaks for the ultra-wealthy in America, there will be nothing left to provide for good schools, hospitals and economic development in rural America and nothing with which to write a decent farm bill." Proponents of estate tax repeal recently said that elimination of the tax is important because the tax prevents farmers from passing along their operations to the heirs. In reality, the estate tax applies to very few farms and ranches and has not caused the liquidation of farms as proponents suggest. Additionally, the estate tax repeal plan passed by the house, H.R. 8, would not eliminate the tax for another 10 years, NFU adds. National Farmers Union supports immediately increasing the estate tax exemption to cover estates valued at $4 million per person, which results in an exemption of $8 million per couple. That level would protect the estates of virtually every family farm from any estate tax hardship faced by the farmers and small businesses. This targeted, fiscally responsible and fair approach helps families better address estate planning, while retaining more resources for other needed public investments to improve communities. 

French Teen Dies; BSE Variant Blamed.  THE ASSOCIATED PRESS reports from Paris that a French teenager has died after slowly losing the ability to walk, speak and breathe. He is believed to have been suffering from the human variant of mad cow disease. Arnaud Eboli, 19, died Wednesday two years after contacting the brain-wasting ailment, according to the Association of Victims of Creutzfeldt-Jakob Disease. His death is France's third fatality from variant Creutzfeldt-Jakob Disease, which is linked to the consumption of tainted beef. In Britain, where mad cow disease was identified in 1995, 90 people have died of the disease. Eboli, once an athlete who excelled at skiing and martial arts, lost the ability to bathe or feed himself. Before he died, he was paralyzed and kept alive through a feeding tube. The article says new cases of the animal ailment are expected to break out in France until 2002 -- five years after agriculture authorities took rigorous measures to prevent more outbreaks. About 150 cows were discovered with the disease in France last year, compared to 31 the year before. 

April 26, 2001

Key Priorities Funded in Bush Budget. Agriculture Secretary Ann Veneman says the USDA budget proposal for fiscal 2002 includes "sufficient funding to carry out key priorities" even though the spending plan seeks "to get the growth of spending under control." She testified Wednesday before the Senate agricultural appropriations subcommittee. 

Congress Urged to Use ‘Aggressive' Trade Policy. The United States needs an aggressive trade policy that employs full use of export programs to maintain market-oriented farm policies, the Senate Agriculture Committee was told Wednesday. Charles J. O'Mara said full planting flexibility and production require "enhanced efforts to increase U.S. farm exports and competitiveness." 

Pork Task Force Will Lead Restructuring. A task force has been named that will lead the restructuring and development of the pork industry's future when the National Pork Producers Council has been separated from the National Board. Invited to participate on the task force are 39 members from 20 states that include pork producers representing a variety of production sizes and styles, allied industry and state pork associations. 

Corn Growers Outline Income Support Proposal. The National Corn Growers Association has proposed that Congress approve a counter cyclical income support program as part of the next farm law. Lee, Klein, NCGA president, of Battle Creek, NE, presented the proposal Wednesday to the House Agriculture Committee. The proposal incorporates the benefits of the marketing assistance loan program and the market loss assistance payments into one program that NCGA says complies with World Trade Organization rules. 

CDC Seeks to Reduce Animal Disease Transmissions.  The Centers for Disease Control has released what it calls "new strategies" designed to reduce the risk of disease transmission from animals to people at places where people have contact with farm animals. Last year outbreaks of Escherichia coli O157:H7 in Washington and Pennsylvania associated with visits to farms sickened 56 people and led to 19 hospitalizations. 

Report Criticizes EPA Dioxin Assessment. The Dioxin Reassessment Review Subcommittee of the Scientific Advisory Board (SAB), an independent scientific panel that advises the Environmental Protection Agency, released a review of an EPA dioxin risk assessment originally published in 1994. The SAB report criticizes EPA's conclusions and recommends substantial revisions to the assessment. 

Carbon Cycle Research Urged on Administration.  Sens. Pat Roberts (R-KS) and Mike Enzi (R-WY) want the Bush Administration to incorporate a carbon cycle research program into its climate change policy. "We are providing a clear set of agricultural-based principles that should be included in any climate change strategy," said Roberts and Enzi in a letter to the White House. Roberts, an advocate for the need to explore the role of voluntary farming practices in reducing harmful climate change, last year authored major legislation to make carbon cycle research a higher priority at USDA. He also succeeded in including $15 million for carbon cycle research in 2000 crop insurance reform legislation. Roberts and Enzi recommended that the administration "maintain and strengthen carbon sequestration as a viable tool to offset the emissions of greenhouse gases" by creating an improved voluntary reporting program where individual farmers, ranchers, cooperatives, foresters and other agricultural related parties can report their carbon sequestration efforts. "Such a system would provide a point of reference for the European Union and other nations to recognize how American agriculture not only provides food and fiber for the world, but provides an important global environmental benefit as well," they said. 

U.S., Canada Resolve Potato Dispute.  REUTERS reports that the United States and Canada have resolved a six-month ban on imports of some Canadian potatoes that officials feared could be tainted with a rare fungus, but both sides continued to negotiate how to implement the deal. However, Canada's Agriculture Minister Lyle Vanclief said his government was still reviewing the terms of the bilateral agreement and indicated Canada might not approve it. Last October, the United States banned the import of all potatoes from Prince Edward Island -- on the east coast of Canada -- after the potato wart fungus was discovered in part of one potato field. The fungus is not dangerous to people, but causes unsightly growths on the potatoes, which then cannot be sold. Canada maintained the U.S. concerns were overblown and called the ban a trade barrier. Agriculture Secretary Ann Veneman said Wednesday the two sides had reached an agreement to allow shipments to U.S. markets if the Canadian potatoes were for food use and were washed and "desprouted." 

Triple Ethanol Use, Coalition Advises.  The Sustainable Energy Coalition (SEC) recommends that the Bush administration and Congress triple the production and use of ethanol to 4.5 billion gallons per year by 2010. The SEC brings together more than 30 national business, environmental, consumer, and energy policy organizations to advocate for federal energy policies that will lead to a cleaner environment and safe reliable energy technologies. Noting the United States is increasingly dependent on imported fossil fuels, the limitations of U.S. refining capacity, and the growing threat of climate change, the SEC recommended that Congress and the administration develop a renewable fuel standard and use biodiesel or ethanol-blended diesel in all federal diesel engines. They called for opposing California's request for a waiver from the reformulated gasoline program's oxygenate requirement, prioritizing research to reduce the cost of ethanol production, and establishing a nationwide ethanol education program. Eric Vaughn, president of the Renewable Fuels Association and a SEC member, said "By emphasizing ethanol, the government can spark rural economic development, create American jobs, protect the environment, and put our country on a glide path to a sustainable energy future. Embracing the SEC recommendations would go a long way in making this promise a reality." 

Ohio Farmers Go on Biotech Offensive.  A group of Ohio farmers has taken a pro-active approach to the biotechnology debate by participating in "Breakthroughs in Biotechnology," a speaker training program designed to communicate the benefits consumers gain through agricultural biotechnology. The program focuses on public outreach and is conducted by American Farm Bureau's Foundation for Agriculture in cooperation with Ohio Farm Bureau Federation (OFBF). On April 19, 23 Ohio volunteers participated in the initial training program designed to prepare them to give presentations to local community groups. The benefits derived from biotechnology include improved food products, better medicines and an enhanced environment. Farm Bureau policy supports biotechnology, however, some aspects of the science have become controversial in recent years. This consumer outreach program is a way to combat misinformation with fact-based presentations by those who are often on the front lines of biotech issues -- farmers, according to supporters. Consumer survey research has indicated that consumers who perceive benefits from agricultural biotechnology are more likely to support it. Examples of biotechnology advances include golden rice enriched with beta- carotene and iron that promises to prevent blindness for millions of people in the developing world and a banana that contains an edible vaccine to fend off hepatitis, one of the world's most devastating diseases. 

Japan Lifts Pork Ban Selectively. BLOOMBERG NEWS reports that Japan's Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries will remove the ban on pork imports from Denmark, Finland, Sweden and Austria, effective Wednesday (April 25). The government banned imports of pork from the four countries on March 24 in response to concerns about foot-and-mouth disease. Japan imported 30 billion yen ($243 million) worth of pork and pork products in February, with about 25% from Europe, according to the Finance Ministry. 

France Warns U.S. on Farm Subsidies. REUTERS reports that efforts to launch a new round of World Trade Organization talks later this year will fail if the United States pushes the European Union too hard on agricultural subsidies. French foreign trade secretary Francois Huwart said, "I told (U.S. Trade Representative Robert Zoellick) it was important there not be any pre-negotiations, particularly in terms of agriculture," Huwart told reporters after a meeting with his U.S. counterpart. One reason the December 1999 WTO meeting in Seattle ended in failure was a sharp disagreement between key trading partners over negotiating goals for agriculture. Backed by the Cairns Group of 18 farm-exporting nations, the United States tried unsuccessfully to get the EU to agree to making the elimination of farm export subsidies a goal. The WTO will hold its next ministerial meeting in Qatar in November. If the United States against insists on tough agricultural preconditions, "there would be a price to pay in Qatar in terms of failure," Huwart said. 
 

April 25, 2001

Aventis Submits New StarLink Data. New data concerning the levels of StarLink corn protein in processed foods have been submitted to the Environmental Protection Agency by Aventis Crop Sciences, and are being made publicly available. Aventis' new data appear to indicate that potential exposure to the StarLink corn protein in finished food products is significantly lower than previous estimates. 

AMI Claims BSE Risk Lower Than Ever. American Meat Institute Foundation President James H. Hodges says prevention measures put in place in the United States have lowered significantly the risk of bovine spongiform encephalopathy (BSE) showing up in U.S. livestock. "Our risks today of BSE are lower than they've ever been since we understood the threat the disease presented to us," Hodges said. 

Groups Urge Biotech Labeling Rejection. Nine U.S. farm and food groups have urged President Bush to lobby Canadian Prime Minister Jean Chretian and other heads of government to reject proposed labeling guidelines for foods produced by biotechnology. 

Farm Bureau Urges Roadless Initiative Revision. A Clinton administration directive banning road building and logging on 58.5 million acres of national forests would hurt livestock operations that use federal lands, according to American Farm Bureau Federation President Bob Stallman. The farm leader urged Agriculture Secretary Ann Veneman to review the roadless initiative and to create an alternative policy that benefits the multiple users of national forests. 

New Fields for Karnal Bunt Proposed. USDA is proposing to add new fields to the list of areas regulated for Karnal bunt following the detection of bunted kernels in grain harvested from these fields. At the same time, USDA is proposing to remove certain fields from the list of regulated areas in instances where wheat is no longer grown in the fields or where the wheat has tested negative for Karnal bunt. 

New Battle for Britain.  REUTERS reports that Britain is fighting on new fronts in the foot-and-mouth crisis with the news that more humans may have been infected. That meant fresh health worries and dealt a blow to the campaign to woo back nervous tourists. Health officials were investigating two more suspected cases of human infection, 24 hours after a slaughterman who was sprayed with the entrails from a burst animal carcass became the first suspected victim of the disease in 34 years. Test results are not expected before next week. The slaughterman, who had been working with infected livestock in the north of England, was "moving a decomposing carcass of a cow and that carcass exploded and the fluid went into his mouth," Prime Minister Tony Blair's spokesman said. 

Congress Far From Farm Policy Consensus. Congress is nowhere near a consensus on a new, costlier farm subsidy plan, lawmakers said on Tuesday, but growers agree they want more assistance from the government when prices decline, and they want the freedom to plant what they want, REUTERS reports. A successor to the landmark "Freedom to Farm" law, which deregulated farming in 1996, could begin to take shape by early summer. While aspects of "Freedom to Farm" are highly popular, the law commonly is faulted for providing too little shelter for farmers against low prices now in their fourth year. Two well-regarded analysts told the National Association of Agricultural Journalists there was a good deal of agreement about the likely contents of a new farm program, so the goal was achievable. Farm-state lawmakers were not as sanguine. "There isn't (consensus) as yet," said Rep. Charles Stenholm (D-TX), the Democratic leader on the House Agriculture Committee. He said the Bush administration "needs to be prepared to give some recommendations" on what to do. But, Stenholm added, "I'm ready to roll up my sleeves and go to work." Senate Agriculture Committee Chairman Richard Lugar (R-IN) replied "Oh, some distance" when asked if agreement was close on crop supports. Sen. Tom Harkin (D-IA), the Democratic leader on the Senate committee, said he believed a full-scale farm policy bill would not be completed this year. Conservation and rural economic development must be part of an overall bill, Harkin said. The major obstacle for lawmakers was how to write a formula that would send more aid automatically to growers when prices inevitably weakened. A handful of conflicting plans was on the table. 

Payment Applications Being Collected.  USDA is collecting applications from cotton gins for the 2000-crop cottonseed payment program beginning April 27 and ending May 18. The program will pay gins up to $100 million to offset low 2000-crop cottonseed prices. USDA will base individual payments on the estimated quantity of cottonseed produced from the bales and lint weight reported on the application. Payments are being made to gins because they usually retain proceeds from the sale of the cottonseed. However, gins may be required to share payments with cottonseed farmers in cases where farmers have been affected been low cottonseed prices. USDA has mailed applications to 1,004 cotton gins. Gins that have not received an application form by April 30 should call (202) 720-8481 for an application to be faxed or mailed. Applications must be returned by May 18. Ginners who have submitted an original signature to FSA's Price Support Division in Washington may send their application by FAX to (202) 720-9069. Companies that operated more than one gin for the 2000 crop should submit one application for all gin locations. About two weeks after the last application is received, USDA's Commodity Credit Corporation will make payments by direct deposit and mail deposit notifications to gins. 

EEP Poultry Going to Middle East.  USDA has accepted three bids from Tyson Foods, Inc., under the Export Enhancement Program (EEP) for 500 tons of frozen poultry to Middle East countries. Delivery is from April 24 to July 1. The average bonus for Tyson was worth $600 per ton. Middle East countries' remaining EEP balance is11,646 metric ton. 

Freedom Farm Ukraine Tour Announced.  Freedom Farm International Inc. (http://www.farmukraine.com), a U.S. agricultural production and processing company operating in Ukraine, has announced the summer schedule for agricultural tours to Ukraine for this summer. Currently Freedom Farm is farming 15,000 acres in the highly productive, irrigated region of southern Ukraine and processing 200,000 bushels of soybeans per year. Soybeans, wheat and corn are the main crops along with alfalfa and vegetables. The soils are very productive, black, prairie types with high moisture holding capabilities. The visit will include a guided tour of the main pumping station for the Kakhovka Majestic Canal, the 7 million bushel Brataslubovka Elevator, area Christian outreach ministries and several farms including some that are available for cash rent. Our announcement today affirms our trust and commitment to this wonderful farming area of the world," said Denhart. The southern region is ideal for growing many crops and for marketing them via the natural waterways that pass through the area. Freedom Farm's next tour will leave Chicago on Saturday, June 23 and travel to Odessa, Ukraine, by air, via Vienna. From Odessa the group will travel by bus visiting the southern regions of Ukraine. Highlights of the tour will be the irrigation canals, the Dnieper River, several local grain elevator terminals and ports, Freedom Farm's operation and several area former Soviet style farms. On Friday, June 29 the group will leave Ukraine and overnight in Vienna, Austria, and return to Chicago the next day. The cost for the Ukrainian tour is $2899 including hotels and meals. More information is available on the web site http://www.farmukraine.com. 

Three Human FMD Cases Suspected. REUTERS reports from London that Britain is investigating three suspected cases of foot-and-mouth disease in humans, one of which may have been caused when a slaughterman was sprayed with entrails from a rotting carcass. The slaughterman, who had been working with infected livestock in the north of England, was "moving a decomposing carcass of a cow and that carcass exploded and the fluid went into his mouth," Prime Minister Tony Blair's spokesman said. A spokesman for the government's Public Health Laboratory Services (PHLS) told Reuters later there were two further possible cases of human foot-and-mouth. The news agency says officials released the gruesome description of how the slaughterman may have caught the virulent livestock disease in an attempt to show the "unusual circumstances" surrounding the suspected human case. The article further notes that Britain's tourism board scrambled to instil confidence among visitors as the industry reeled from the blow of suspected cases of foot-and-mouth disease in human beings. Test results on the slaughterman were not due until after the weekend, health officials said. If confirmed, it will be the first case of human foot-and-mouth in Britain since the last outbreak of the disease here in 1966-67. There is no evidence the disease can be passed from person to person. 
 

April 24, 2001

Alto, LOL Form Cheese Joint Venture.  Alto Dairy Cooperative and Land O'Lakes, Inc. have formed a cheese marketing joint venture, bringing together the commodity cheddar and mozzarella sales teams and marketing efforts of the two companies. Officials of both companies said the focus of the new venture, a marketing agency in common (MAC), will be to enhance customer service, expand product offerings, reduce costs and provide customers with national product sourcing. 

Bond, Tanner Table Bill on Nitrogen Runoff. Legislation designed to reduce the amount of nitrogen and chemicals that run from fields into rivers, lakes and streams has been introduced in the Senate by Sen. Christopher Bond (R-MO) and in the House by Rep. John Tanner (D-TN). The bills, titled The Fishable Waters Act (S 678 and HR 325), would provide $350 million per year for clean water projects geared towards reducing the amount of nitrogen and chemicals that run off into waterways. 

China Sugar Acreage Again Declines.  Acreage planted to sugar cane and beets continued to decline in China this year. Combined with a drought in cane producing areas, production declined even further than expected, according to a USDA report. Sugar prices have increased sharply in response. In an effort to bring prices down, the government has continued sales of surplus stocks, and industry sources believe that increased imports soon will be permitted. 

Companies in StarLink Buyback.  USDA says 77 small seed companies have enrolled in the department's buyback program for corn seed inadvertently contaminated with StarLink, a genetically modified variety not approved for human use, THE WALL STREET JOURNAL reports. The companies produce less than 1% of all corn seed in the United States. USDA does not know how much StarLink-contaminated corn seed each of the companies has found. The buyback program, which was announced last month, is expected to cost between $15 million and $20 million. USDA spokesman Kevin Herglotz said the program was only for smaller companies because larger ones already have testing and disposal systems in place. The Environmental Protection Agency has approved StarLink for use only in animal feed because of concerns that it might cause allergic reactions in humans. But the corn, which contains an insecticide, managed to make its way into the human food supply last year, prompting widespread food recalls. Since then, the article notes, StarLink's maker, Aventis SA of France, has pulled it from the market. The company is reimbursing some farmers and others in the industry for losses suffered when corn crops intended for human consumption became contaminated with StarLink. 

An ADM-Farmland Deal in the Works?  The ROOSTER NEWS NETWORK says Archer Daniels Midland (ADM) confirms that it is in confidential talks with Farmland Industries, but a company spokesperson declined to provide any details. On Thursday, "rumors began to fly around the Kansas City Board of Trade" that the Decatur, IL-based ADM was negotiating to buy Farmland's entire grain division, while "others predicted a sale of the farmer-owned cooperative's network of 13 elevators, with an estimated 150-million-bushel capacity," the article notes. Other speculation included the possibility that ADM and Farmland might form a limited-liability company or a joint venture. Farmland lost $29.25 million in fiscal 2000, the first annual loss since 1993 for the country's largest farmer-owned cooperative. Some restructuring efforts seem to be boosting the financial picture a bit. Just last week, Farmland reported a second-quarter net loss for the period ending Feb. 28 of $1.3 million, compared with a $22.1 million net loss in the same period last year. 

Higher Fertilizer Costs Coming.  REUTERS reports that the Bush administration says that California's energy crisis will contribute to an increase in fuel and fertilizer costs for U.S. farmers, but it remained unclear whether this could translate into higher food prices for consumers. California's chronic electricity shortage has been blamed for increasing the price of natural gas, a fuel for many California power plants as well as a key ingredient in farm fertilizers. "This California situation, I believe, is going to be very significant for agriculture particularly as we move into the summer," Agriculture Secretary Ann Veneman told reporters. Farmers have raised concerns about the possibility of not having adequate supplies of fertilizer for this spring's planting season as higher natural gas prices increase production costs. Natural gas is a primary ingredient in the production of fertilizer. 

UK Man FMD Suspect.  REUTERS reports from London that a slaughterman could be the first human case of a foot-and-mouth epidemic decimating livestock in Britain. The Department of Health said the suspected case in northern England was a man who had been culling farm animals infected with the disease in Cumbria, one of the main locations of the two-month-old outbreak. It will need up to 48 hours for confirmation, authorities said. The news agency says if confirmed, it would be the first case of the human form of the disease since the foot-and-mouth outbreak among cloven-hooved farm animals in Britain in February. "We have been notified of a suspected case of foot and mouth. Foot-and-mouth in humans is very rare but it can occur. This case is being investigated urgently," the Department of Health said in a statement. The statement added that "foot and mouth is a mild illness in humans." The disease is not fatal in humans or animals. Health officials said there had been one case of the human form of the disease in 1967, the last time the virus swept Britain. The 1967 victim recovered. The disease is a mild flu-like illness. Authorities say there is no evidence it can be passed from person to person. 

China Possible New Target for U.S. Soy-Based Feed.  BLOOMBERG NEWS reports that Archer Daniels Midland Co. Chief Executive G. Allen Andreas says the grain processor's best chance to increase profits may be China's growing market for chicken and pork. As meat consumption increases in China, so do its chicken and hog populations and demand for soy-based livestock feed. ADM gets two- thirds of its revenue from processing soybeans. While the company has closed some U.S. plants this year, it is planning to expand in China, where soybean imports have tripled since 1998. "The real dynamics of supply and demand are dictated by population, especially in the Asia-Pacific region, where you have 3.5 billion people," Andreas said in a recent interview. "We are going to be in a position to capture that demand." The news agency said ADM shares have declined 25% since early February. Shareholders who bought ADM stock five years ago lost 18% on the investment during a period when the return on the Standard & Poor's 500 Index, including stock appreciation and dividends, doubled. "The company is in transition right now, figuring out how to move its assets further downstream from being just a raw materials provider to a manufacturer of more enhanced-value products," said Don Brown, an analyst at the Ohio Public Employees Retirement System, which owned 982,970 shares of ADM as of December. 
 

April 20, 2001

Allen Johnson Chief USTR Agriculture Negotiator. Allen Johnson, president of the National Oilseed Processors Association, has been named by President George W. Bush to be the chief agriculture negotiator in the U.S. Trade Representative's office. A native of Iowa, Johnson also served as executive director of the Iowa Soybean Association and is a former aide to Sen. Charles Grassley (R-IA). Grassley is chairman of the Senate Finance Committee that has trade jurisdiction in the Senate. 

USDA Announces Mexican Sugar Import TRQ. USDA has announced the fiscal year 2001 tariff-rate quota (TRQ) shipping patterns for U.S. imports of Mexican sugar. Mexico will be allowed to ship up to 70% of its outstanding TRQ quantity of 105,788 metric tons raw value before June 30. The remaining 30%, plus any residual quantity not shipped prior to June 30, may enter during the final quarter (July-September) of the fiscal year. 

Mixed Bag on NAFTA's Benefits.  John Skorburg, senior economist, economic analysis, American Farm Bureau Federation, says the North American Free Trade Agreement has been "good" for the United States, Canada and Mexico, but "results differ by category and commodity." His analysis was made on the heels of a release by USDA's Foreign Agricultural Service of country and commodity data for 2000. The data is broken down into three agricultural categories for both imports and exports; bulk, intermediate and consumer oriented goods.

U.S. Corn Seed Ban Sought.  Consumer groups in Japan have urged the government to prohibit domestic sales of corn seeds imported from the United States because of fears over contamination by unapproved genetically modified StarLink corn, REUTERS reports. StarLink was found last October in food products in Japan where it is not approved for food or animal feed use. The discovery prompted the single biggest U.S. corn buyer to reduce its buying sharply and find other supply sources. The consumer groups' request follows concerns over possible StarLink contamination in this year's U.S. crop in early March when tests by seed companies there found the Cry9C protein in seed corn set for planting this spring. 

Asian Meat Consumption Slows. Asia's meat consumption may be slowing as many nations, feeling the pinch of a sluggish U.S. economy and fearing animal diseases, reduce demand, a senior U.S. meat industry official said on Friday, according to REUTERS. "We are expecting that red meat consumption in Asia would fall this year definitely to some extent," Eric Choon, ASEAN (Association of Southeast Asian Nations) director of the U.S. Meat Export Federation, told the news agency in a telephone interview. "It is very difficult to give a figure for the fall at this stage. But as we can see, there is an apparent fall in consumption levels, which is more due to the global economic situation and to some extent because of the current mad cow and foot-and-mouth fears," Choon added. He said the Asian countries where red meat consumption was showing a sharper decline compared to others were Japan, South Korea, Taiwan and Singapore. 

Donated Goods Head for Cuba.  THE ASSOCIATED PRESS reports that a cargo ship carrying donated products left Jacksonville, FL, for Havana Thursday as shipping between the U.S. and Cuba resumed after 40 years. The vessel, owned by Crowley Liner Services of Jacksonville, is to unload in Cuba on Saturday. Crowley is the first shipping company to get a federal license for such service. Shippers also must get licenses for sales. "It's clearly precedent-setting," said John Kavulich, president of the U.S.-Cuba Trade and Economic Council, an organization representing U.S. businesses. "It's an important visual moment in the bilateral relationship." The Havana stop was added to a weekly route between Florida and Mexico. Whether the Cuba service will continue depends on demand, said Mark Miller, a spokesman for Crowley. Congress last year authorized the sale of food and agricultural products to Cuba but imposed tight restrictions; the sales cannot be subsidized by the federal government or financed by U.S. banks. 

FMD Controlled in Britain. THE ASSOCIATED PRESS reports from London that the government's chief scientific adviser says Britain's culling policy has brought the foot-and-mouth epidemic "fully under control." But protests increased over the pre-emptive slaughter of healthy animals. Chief Scientist David King said the average daily total of new cases had dropped to 23 from 43 at the end of March. "On the basis of the fall in the number of cases being reported, the epidemic now is fully under control," King said. But he warned it would be a "bumpy ride" until the livestock scourge is eliminated. "As the epidemic comes under control it becomes more imperative that the controls remain," King said. "Restricting the movement of people and animals is crucial to the containment of the disease. We have to keep very, very vigilant." 

NCGA Founder Dies.  Walter W. Goeppinger, founder of the National Corn Growers Association, died Tuesday of heart failure. He was 89, THE ASSOCIATED PRESS reports from Ames, IA. Goeppinger established the corn growers group in 1957 and was president until 1973. He organized 10 agriculture-related trips to countries such as Russia and China from 1973 to 1982. Goeppinger of Ames also was president of the U.S. Feed Grains Council and a member of its executive committee. 

Japan Will Use Mandatory Safety Checks. Japan's Agriculture Ministry says it will begin using mandatory safety checks to guard against imports of unapproved genetically modified (GM) crops for animal feed, REUTERS reports. The announcement follows a recommendation by a government panel. The ministry said in a statement the 10-member panel of experts had proposed setting a framework to measure acceptable levels of GM content since a zero-tolerance policy would be difficult to implement. "If the new rules are completed, the government can impose a ban on unapproved gene-altered products or order recalls of the products," said a ministry official. Details of the new rules, including the standard of testing and the level of tolerance, are subject to further discussions, the ministry said. 
 

April 19, 2001

Veneman Outlines Food Safety Agenda. Agriculture Secretary Ann M. Veneman Wednesday outlined her agenda for USDA's food safety priorities. The remarks came at the annual "Food Safety Summit" held in Washington. Veneman released data showing continued declines in salmonella prevalence in raw meat and poultry products and pledged to continue working to strengthen food safety programs. 

Administration Seeks Broad Agricultural Policy.  The Bush Administration seeks an agricultural policy that extends far beyond price supports and income protection, according to Agriculture Secretary Ann Veneman. Trade, tax relief, research, biotechnology, energy and new uses for farm products are an integral part of the Bush policy structure, she said Wednesday in remarks prepared for delivery at the ninth annual Sparks Companies food and agriculture policy conference. 

Cattlemen Work on Consumer Confidence.  The National Cattlemen's Beef Association has outlined steps it hopes will assure continued consumer confidence in the safety of U.S. beef. Many of these efforts are being conducted on behalf of the Cattlemen's Beef Board through the beef checkoff. The overall strategy includes tactics for working with government, industry and consumer experts to provide facts about bovine spongiform encephalopathy (BSE) and foot-and-mouth disease (FMD) to appropriate audiences, including consumer media and food channels such as meat processors, retailers and restaurant operators. 

USDA Proposes Nutrition Labeling.  USDA is moving ahead with mandatory nutrition labeling on some meat and poultry products, extending the comment period by three months. In January, USDA's Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS) proposed this change in accordance with current regulations governing compliance with nutrition labeling after voluntary participation fell below a 60% threshold in October 1999. The October 1999 national survey showed compliance at 54.8%. USDA is requesting that additional comments on the "Proposed Rule to Require Nutrition Labeling on Single-Ingredient Meat and Poultry Products" [Docket No. 98-005E] be received by July 18. This additional 90 days will allow the completion of research and the submission of valuable scientific and economic data that will be necessary to implement this important rule. 

IBP Escapes Criminal Charges.  THE ASSOCIATED PRESS reports that no criminal charges will be filed against meat packing giant IBP Inc. An 11-month investigation was conducted into allegations of inhumane slaughter of cattle, and worker and food safety violations at the company's Wallula meat-processing plant in Washington state. A hidden-camera videotape of cattle struggling on a slaughterhouse chain at the IBP plant prompted the investigation. Walla Walla County Prosecutor Jim Nagle said Wednesday he and several other prosecutors who reviewed the case agreed that there would be serious problems trying to conduct a criminal prosecution of IBP. The Humane Farming Association, an animal welfare group in San Rafael, CA, accused IBP of butchering cattle while they were still conscious, citing affidavits from 23 current and former workers at the plant. A videotape the group said was made secretly by a worker shows kicking, struggling cattle hanging upside-down by their hooves from an overhead chain winding through the slaughterhouse. A portion of the tape was broadcast by a Seattle television station. 

FSIS Holds Technical Conference. USDA's Food Safety and Inspection Service is sponsoring a technical conference and public meeting to discuss scientific research and new technologies, provide information, and receive public comments specific to the recently proposed regulatory requirements for ready-to-eat meat and poultry products. The technical conference will be held on Tuesday, May 8 from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. The public meeting will be held on Wednesday, May 9 through Thursday, May 10, from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. each day. Both events will be held at the Washington Plaza Hotel, 10 Thomas Circle, NW, Washington, DC 20005. To register for these events or arrange for a sign language interpreter or other special accommodation, contact Mary Harris, tel. (202) 690-6497, fax (202) 690-6500. On Feb. 27, FSIS published a proposed rule, "Performance Standards for the Production of Processed Meat and Poultry Products." In that document, the agency proposed food safety measures applicable to all ready-to-eat and all partially heat-treated meat and poultry products, as well as environmental testing requirements intended to reduce the incidence of listeria monocytogenes in processed meat and poultry products. FSIS has extended the comment period for the proposed rule to allow the public to comment on issues raised at the technical conference and public meeting. Comments must now be received by June 28. All written comments must be submitted to: FSIS Docket No. 97-013P, Department of Agriculture, Food Safety and Inspection Service, Room 102, 300 12th Street, SW, Washington, DC 20250-3700. 

Glickman Says Bush Doing Okay on FMD.  The Bush administration has responded properly to the threat of foot-and-mouth disease but didn't mount a public relations campaign like the Clinton White House would have done, former Agriculture Secretary Dan Glickman said Wednesday, according to an ASSOCIATED PRESS report. "As a matter of principle, the government has to do everything it can to maintain public confidence in the food supply," said Glickman, who was attending a food-safety conference where his successor, Ann Veneman, was speaking. Had Europe's foot-and-mouth outbreak occurred while President Clinton was still in office, "there probably would have been a greater PR strategy from the White House earlier on" to assure consumers that the government was on top of the problem, Glickman said. Glickman agreed with Veneman that U.S. consumers have confused foot-and-mouth, which is harmless to humans, with deadly and much rarer mad cow disease. Mad cow disease has never been found in the United States. Foot-and-mouth hasn't been reported in this country since 1929. 

Study Finds Organic Apples More Profitable. BLOOMBERG NEWS reports that apples grown organically generally are more profitable for farmers, taste sweeter and result in fewer pollutants than those raised using synthetic pesticides and fertilizers. A new study, which appears in this week's edition of the journal Nature, compared the economic and environmental impact of organic farming, conventional farming and a combination of both methods. The six-year analysis by Washington State University researchers counters claims that organic farming is less efficient and produces lower yields than conventional methods. "The organic farming system in the study was more profitable because, in general, yields and fruit grade were similar and the organic fruit received higher prices," said John Reganold, an author of the study and a professor in the department of crop and soil sciences at Washington State. Organically grown apples also were "sweeter and less tart," used less energy to produce, and resulted in better soil, the report said. 

Dairy Farmers Act Against Visitors.  REUTERS reports that some U.S. dairy farmers are not allowing European visitors on their farms in the wake of comments by federal officials that have fanned fears the highly contagious foot-and-mouth disease could strike in the United States. The Northeast Dairy Producers Association, representing producers in seven states including New York, Pennsylvania and Vermont, said most of its 125 members were closing off their farms to anyone who visited Europe in the past several months because of foot-and-mouth fears. A spokesman for the group said the farmers' actions were a result of comments by federal officials regarding the possibility the livestock disease could strike in the United States. The disease has since been confirmed in the Netherlands, France and Ireland. Argentina, Saudi Arabia, South Korea and Taiwan have reported recent foot-and-mouth outbreaks. 
 

April 18, 2001

Regulatory Transparency ‘Victory.'  A federal court ruling requiring the publication for public comment of an agency consent decree is a victory for regulatory transparency and stakeholder involvement, according to the American Crop Protection Association. Last Friday, Judge Charles Legge of the Northern District Court in California granted ACPA's motion to have the Jan.19 proposed consent decree between the Environmental Protection Agency and the Natural Resources Defense Council published on EPA's web site. 

Ability to Trace Solution to StarLink Problem.  An Internet online grain auditing company, CropVerifeye.com, LLC believes "traceability" is a solution to the threat of decreasing exports and product recalls such as those that have occurred with StarLink corn. USDA now expects corn exports will decline by at least 50 million bushels this year, and that creates "a grim scenario for many American producers as well as for U.S. grain processors," the company said. 

Staffs Briefed on Policy from Wall Street Perspective. David C. Nelson, agribusiness stock analyst at Credit Suisse First Boston in New York City, says House and Senate Agriculture Committee staffs told last week that from Wall Street's perspective, odds "appear to be increasing for a change in farm policy this year rather than next." One reason is the importance of food policy to lawmakers; it is "clearly one of the most important of all (lawmakers') jobs." 

Groups Wants More BSE Prevention Steps Taken.  Food Animal Concerns Trust (FACT), a Chicago-based non-profit national organization that educates the public about the dangers of food-borne illnesses, has urged the U.S. Food and Drug Administration and USDA to take four more aggressive steps to prevent an outbreak of bovine spongiform encephalopathy (BSE), the so-called "mad cow disease," in the United States. FACT's recommendations are to prohibit blood and blood products in animal feeds; better enforcement of rules against commingling feeds for different types of farm animals; more and better surveillance of cattle for the possible presence of BSE in the United States and to invest in developing new and better testing for the presence of BSE. FACT, an organization with 30,000 individual supporters nationwide, supports increased funding for our federal agencies' BSE work and has been involved in developing a federal strategy to keep U.S. cattle free of BSE. 

Winter Wheat Seems Okay. The U.S. winter wheat crop will escape mostly unscathed from the freezing cold weather sweeping through the U.S. Plains, protected by the slow pace of its development, agronomists said Tuesday, according to REUTERS. "The general impression is that the wheat is not far enough along as planting was delayed," Jim Shroyer of Kansas State University said. "I'm not terribly concerned." He said much of the jointed wheat in Kansas was in the southern part of the state, where temperatures were not expected to be as severe as farther north. Meteorologists said temperatures held in the low 20s Fahrenheit in northern Kansas for several hours on Tuesday. Agronomists and agricultural meteorologists say temperatures that hold in the low 20s Fahrenheit for at least three hours could damage wheat that has already jointed, when the head begins the process of moving up the tillers. USDA says that in Kansas, the largest winter wheat producing state, 23% of the winter wheat crop had jointed as of Sunday, compared with 78% a year ago and the five-year average of 53%. 

Australian Vets Want More Protection.  THE WALL STREET JOURNAL reports that the Australian Veterinary Association wants the government to do more to protect livestock industries from foot-and-mouth disease. The article says the AVA welcomed the fact 25 veterinarians from state and federal agencies have spent a month in the U.K. helping to fight the outbreak and gaining experience to bring back to Australia. The association wants the government to fund the travel of private veterinarians to the U.K. to gain practical experience to combat the disease, but it says the government hasn't responded to the idea. The criticism was voiced in a letter to Prime Minister John Howard and Deputy Prime Minster John Anderson issued by the association's President Ian Denney. 

FMD Outbreak Chances ‘Quite Great.' THE ASSOCIATED PRESS reports that the director of the only U.S. lab that studies and tests for foot-and-mouth disease says chances of an outbreak somewhere in the country for FMD are "quite great," given the numbers of people who travel between the United States and Britain. "It's only through the diligence of the people at the various ports of entry that we've been able to keep it out. I'll have to add also luck," said David Huxsoll, director of the Agriculture Department's Plum Island laboratory, off Long Island, NY. If the virus has reached the United States already, it could have been in the country for only 24 to 48 hours, Huxsoll said. "Signs for the disease would appear quite quickly, and we have veterinarians ... that are extremely alert and sensitive to the appearance to those kind of lesions and it would get reported very quickly," he said. Plum Island would be the first to know of an outbreak because it tests tissue samples sent in by veterinarians from suspect cases. USDA, meanwhile, has asked a variety of federal agencies, including the departments of Defense and Interior, to help prepare for an outbreak of foot-and-mouth disease. 
 

April 17, 2001

Corn Growers Again Spurn Spring Flood.  The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers is considering changes to its operation of dams on the lower portion of the Missouri River to raise the water level in the spring and lower it during the summer. The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and environmental activists contend this will protect birds and fish that have been listed as endangered or threatened. But the National Corn Growers Association (NCGA) has re-emphasized its opposition to proposed changes Corps' Missouri River "master manual," because they would harm agriculture by reducing navigation and increasing the potential for spring rises. 

Brazil's Agricultural ‘Hat Trick.'  A combination of increased area, higher technological inputs and generally very favorable weather have resulted in record production of corn, soybeans, and cotton in Brazil for 2000-01, according to a report from USDA's Foreign Agricultural Service. 

Corps Assists to Prevent Wetland Violations. The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers is working closely with state and other federal agencies to prevent a rash of future wetland violations in Franklin County, Vermont, and to remedy present violations, by assisting farmers to obtain the proper permits prior to work. Violations are associated with large land conversion projects where forest is being converted into cropland, and with smaller projects where existing farm fields have been expanded or improved with additional drainage without first obtaining the necessary state and federal permits.

California Farmers Protest Prices, Supplies. Tractors rumbled up Capitol Mall in Sacramento, CA, Monday as farmers, beset with depressed crop prices, scarce energy and water supplies and intense foreign competition, rallied at the state Capitol. California Farm Bureau President Bill Pauli said farmers need support from lawmakers and the public to weather the current farm crisis. Pauli, a wine grape and pear grower from Mendocino County, said farmers face one of the most difficult and challenging times in the state's history. He said most people are unaware of the pain being felt on farms across the state. A combination of low farm prices, costly regulations, and scarce energy and water supplies threaten the state's leading industry. Pauli said farmers need relief from unfair taxes, unnecessary regulations and uneven trade policy. 

U.S., China Reach Agriculture Agreement. BLOOMBERG NEWS reports that the United States and China have reached a compromise over agricultural subsidies, a key issue in China's bid to join the World Trade Organization. The report originated with Germany's business daily Handelsblatt which did not cite sources. The two countries on March 30 agreed that China will be allowed to subsidize farm prices with as much as 8% of the production value, the newspaper reported. The agreement was kept secret because of the dispute over a U.S. spy plane earlier this month, Handelsblatt said. China had planned to join the WTO last year but failed to complete its negotiations because of lingering disputes over agriculture and insurance issues. Congress had approved normal trade status with China each year on an annual basis, before it voted last year to make it permanent. The delay has raised likelihood of another vote by Congress on extending trade privileges on another one-year basis. 

Lawmakers Going to Quebec City. REUTERS reports that several U.S. farm state members of Congress will attend a summit of 34 Western Hemisphere leaders this weekend in Quebec City to monitor negotiations to create the world's largest free trade zone, stretching from Chile to Canada. President George W. Bush hopes to use the meeting to boost efforts to complete negotiations on the proposed Free Trade Area of the Americas by January 2005. The presence of U.S. farm state lawmakers at the meeting would show "neighboring nations that we in agriculture will closely scrutinize our government's trade agreements," House Agriculture Committee Chairman Larry Combest (R-TX) said in a statement. Sen. Charles Grassley (R-IA), who chairs the Senate Finance Committee, also hopes to attend the Quebec City summit if his schedule permits, an aide said. Sen. Max Baucus (D-MT), the top Democrat on the Finance panel, will attend the meeting, an aide said. 

Seed Companies Find StarLink. Seventy-eight U.S. seed companies report their products were inadvertently contaminated with traces of StarLink bioengineered corn, a crop variety not approved for human use, a USDA spokesman told Reuters on Monday. Last month, the USDA found that less than 1% of U.S. corn seed for spring planting was tainted with traces of StarLink's Cry9c protein, the key component that protects young plants from destructive pests. Industry officials discovered traces of the StarLink protein as they prepared to ship bags of seeds to American farmers for spring planting. The bioengineered corn is approved only for animal feed. USDA spokesman Wayne Baggett said as of Monday, 78 seed companies had seed contaminated with the Cry9c protein and were interested in participating in the program. A total of 143 companies reported that none of their seed was contaminated with the StarLink protein. The rest of the companies were still undecided. Baggett said the figures were preliminary and could change as the department reviews each contract. 

Groups Ask for Listeria Comment Extension. The initial 60-day comment period extension for the listeria monocytogenes draft risk assessment and action plan will be insufficient to produce meaningful and thorough comments to USDA and FDA, a coalition of trade associations and companies representing the food industry said last week in a letter. In the April 11 letter, the working group of industry representatives said they have contracted with a third party skilled in risk assessment to help collect and evaluate additional data to improve the risk assessment. The letter seeks more time to compile data, run analyses and assess the results. "The LM Working Group appreciates FDA's goal to expeditiously ‘use the best science available to develop this risk assessment,' and is confident that the agency aspires to produce a document, based on the most current information, that will be most useful to the agency and food industry," the letter says. The group includes the American Meat Institute, American Frozen Foods Institute, Food Marketing Institute, Grocery Manufacturers of America, International Dairy Foods Association, National Chicken Council, National Fisheries Institute, National Food Processors Association and National Turkey Federation. 

Farmland Posts ‘Improved' Net Loss. REUTERS reports that Farmland Industries reported improved second-quarter results on Monday, posting a net loss for the period ended Feb. 28 of $1.3 million, compared with a $22.1 million net loss in the same period last year. For the six months ended Feb. 28, the nation's largest farmer-owned cooperative showed net income of $5.4 million, compared to a $48.6 million loss for the comparable period a year earlier. Officials said the improvement came as the result of stringent cost-cutting that shaved $44 million from the quarterly results as well as increased earnings in the petroleum and crop production businesses. "During these difficult economic times in agriculture, our continued focus on profitability rather than growth has allowed us to significantly increase year-to-date earnings compared to the first six months of fiscal 2000," Farmland President and CEO Bob Honse said in a prepared statement. The petroleum business posted a profit of $15.1 million for the six months ended Feb. 28, compared with a loss of $10.4 million last year, while crop production profits amounted to $140,000, compared with a loss of $44.4 million. 

Humane Society Urges More from USDA. In a letter to Agriculture Secretary Ann Veneman, The Humane Society of the United States urged USDA to increase measures to prevent the spread of foot-and-mouth disease to the United States. The HSUS also cautioned the department not to put globalization of agriculture and trade above the protection of animals in dealing with any potential outbreak of the highly contagious disease in the United States. "The staggering scale of industrialized meat production in the U.S. has made domestic livestock vulnerable to a large-scale outbreak of foot-and-mouth disease," said Patricia Forkan, HSUS executive vice president. "Viruses can spread like wildfire in massive livestock facilities where thousands of animals are crammed together in confined areas. We've turned farms into factories and, if foot-and-mouth hits the U.S., the animals will continue to pay the price." Among the group's recommendations: develop a plan to vaccinate farm animals should the disease be identified in the U.S.; impose a moratorium on all livestock and livestock product imports and end "risky farming practices" that make the U.S. particularly susceptible to the spread of FMD. 

Ireland Doesn't Escape FMD. Only days ago, Northern Ireland had reason to hope it would escape an epidemic of foot-and-mouth disease like that ravaging the farms of mainland Britain, THE ASSOCIATED PRESS reports. But on Monday, "hopes dimmed and pyres flared, as soldiers and agricultural officials slaughtered and incinerated animals to try to prevent the spread of the highly contagious livestock ailment." Until Friday, only one case of foot-and-mouth had been confirmed in the province, and it was six weeks ago. But then came two outbreaks in three days - the latest of them confirmed Sunday. The province's agriculture minister, Brid Rodgers, announced a complete ban on livestock movement Monday, and urged farmers to take drastic steps to keep unnecessary vehicles and visitors off their land. "I have rescinded all licenses to move animals, and I am saying to farmers: sealing off your farms is not putting a (disinfectant) mat at the gate," she said. 

Soy Sales Expand to Indonesia. U.S. credit guarantees and growing demand from Indonesia's poultry industry will help U.S. soy sales there in 2000-01 (October-September) surpass last year levels, an American Soybean Association (ASA) official said on Monday, according to REUTERS. "We are expecting exports of U.S. soybeans and soymeal to Indonesia to show a steady growth this year," said John Lindblom, ASA's regional director for Southeast Asia. "Sales to Indonesia under the GSM program are going on very well." U.S. farm export credit guarantees -- known as the GSM program -- underwrite credit from private U.S. banks to approved foreign banks to finance U.S. agricultural sales. Last year, USDA raised Indonesia's allocation under the credit guarantee program to $500 million for 2000-01 after the $400 million allocation for the previous year was completely used up. 
 

April 16, 2001

Pork Producers Urge All-Out War. Having canceled their World Pork Expo and still faced with a potential onslaught of livestock diseases from overseas, the National Pork Producers Council has urged USDA and the U.S. Customs Service to "put all safeguards in place" to prevent any outbreak of food-and-mouth disease in the United States. 

Castro Meeting Sparks Hopes for U.S. Rice. USA Rice Federation Chairman David Van Oss, Reps. Jo Ann Emerson (R-MO), George Nethercutt (R-WA), and William Delahunt (D-MA), met with Cuban leader Fidel Castro and after the meeting Van Oss said he was hopeful the United States could gain access to a multi-million dollar Cuban market. 

Odor, Gas Emissions Reduced at Hog Farms. Manure storage pit additive products were evaluated extensively at the Purdue University Agricultural Engineering Laboratory in research that tested 35 pit additives for hog operations for effects on odor, ammonia and hydrogen sulfide gas emissions as well as the fertilizer value of the manure. 

Philippines to Increase Sugar Imports. BLOOMBERG NEWS reports that the Philippines expects to increase sugar imports this year by about a sixth from 2000 to 175,000 metric tons to avoid a shortage. The Department of Agriculture plans to import 100,000 tons in June, 50,000 tons in July and the remainder in August, said Archie Amara, chief of staff for undersecretary Cesar Drilon. The imports will be a combination of raw and refined sugar, he said, without providing details. The Philippines is Asia's sixth largest producer of sugar cane. Traders will handle the importation after Leonardo Montemayor, the secretary of agriculture, approves the plan as soon as this week, Amara said. The article says the imports would be the seventh straight year that the Philippines has bought sugar from abroad. The Sugar Regulatory Administration, which oversees the industry, forecasts local raw sugar production in the September to August 2001 milling season at 1.7 million tons and consumption at 1.9 million tons. Responding to a request by USDA, officials said the Philippines won't ship about 40,000 tons remaining under a 142,000-ton U.S. import quota this year because of an abundant sugar supply in the United States. 

Korea Recalls U.S. Meat.  South Korea's National Veterinary Research Quarantine Service (NVRQS) is recalling about 33 tons of U.S. processed meat that might be contaminated with listeria, the local Yonhap News Agency said on Saturday, according to REUTERS. "We are re-collecting 33 tonnes of processed meat imported from the United States between November and February," Yonhap quoted an NVRQS official as saying. He said about 11 tonnes of meat were believed to be in circulation, while the remaining 22 tonnes were stored in cold storage in Yongin, Kyonggi Province. USDA said on Thursday Phoenix-based Bar-S Foods Co voluntarily recalled about 14.5 million pounds (6.58 million kg) of ready-to-eat meat and poultry products that might be contaminated with listeria. The items were distributed to supermarkets, delis and institutions in the United States and shipped to Japan, Korea, Mexico, Puerto Rico and the South Pacific under the brand names Bar-S, Bar-S Extra Lean, Coronado, Chuck Wagon, E-Z Carve and Thrifty, the department said. 

UK Scientists Calls for Limited Vaccination.  The British government's chief scientist has called for limited vaccination of cattle to combat foot-and-mouth disease, but the leader of a key farming organization said Monday that he is opposed, THE ASSOCIATED PRESS reports. Professor David King, who was explaining his position to farmers Monday, said vaccination should be limited to about half a million cattle wintering in sheds in Devon and Cumbria, the counties hit hardest by the epidemic. Vaccination would prevent the cattle from developing the disease when they left the sheds at the end of the winter and encountered sheep which might be harboring the disease, he said. "We have been actively considering vaccination all along as a supplement to our cull policy," King said in an interview with British Broadcasting Corp. Monday. Britain has secured permission from the European Union to vaccinate. 

Higher Wheat Prices Coming.  THE WALL STREET JOURNAL reports that many wheat farmers in Oklahoma and Kansas, facing the worst crop in years, are abandoning their fields, leading to possible higher U.S. wheat prices this summer. With abandonment rates in Kansas approaching 20% and in Oklahoma topping 40%, total U.S. wheat production this year could tumble below 2 billion bushels for the first time since 1991. That means prices for wheat futures contracts at the Chicago Board of Trade have the potential to jump to $3.50 a bushel for the first time since late 1997, some analysts say. The price of the nearby-month May wheat contract at the CBOT has rallied 4% this month. The May contract rose six cents to $2.6675 a bushel Thursday. (Commodity exchanges and other U.S. markets were closed for Good Friday.) Much of Kansas and Oklahoma had virtually no rain between July and the start of November, forcing many farmers to plant their winter wheat in dust. The article says when rain finally came, "it was in buckets, damaging planted fields and keeping farmers who waited to plant out of action until December in some cases. Generally, those who waited did worse." 

Listeria Worries Force Recall in Japan. U.S. processed meat products that might be contaminated with listeria were recalled in Japan after a U.S. firm recalled ready-to-eat meat and poultry products. REUTERS reports that Japan's Health, Labor and Welfare Ministry said Japan has imported 1,224,308 kg of the U.S. products, mainly sausages, through two domestic companies since January last year. Japan also imposed a ban on further imports of the products, the ministry said. USDA said on Thursday Phoenix-based Bar-S Foods Co had voluntarily recalled about 14.5 million pounds (6.58 million kg) of ready-to-eat meat and poultry products produced its Clinton, OK, plant that might be contaminated with listeria. The items were distributed to stores in the United States and shipped to Japan, Korea, Mexico, Puerto Rico and the South Pacific under the brand names Bar-S, Bar-S Extra Lean, Coronado, Chuck Wagon, E-Z Carve and Thrifty, the department said. 

Irish Protestants Cancel Parade. THE ASSOCIATED PRESS reports from Belfast that out of concerns over foot-and-mouth disease, a Protestant marching group Saturday canceled an annual parade that has sparked violence in the past when it wound through Catholic neighborhoods. The announcement came as the agriculture minister said that thousands of livestock would be slaughtered after a second case of the disease was discovered. The new case was found in a herd of dairy cows near Cookstown in County Tyrone, about 16 miles from the border with the Republic of Ireland. That destroyed hopes that the fast-spreading virus had been contained. The first was discovered six weeks ago and 60 miles away. The Apprentice Boys of Londonderry called off all their Easter Monday demonstrations, including the south Belfast parade that Catholic residents had vowed to protest, the first in this year's tense "marching season." "A lot of farmers and their livelihoods are at stake here," said Alastair Simpson, head of the group. "Anybody with any feeling would have done the same." 
 

April 13, 2001

EU Beef Demand Declines Faster than Production.  The European Union's production of beef should decline about 7% this year, but at the same time, consumption is declining even faster, projected to total about 15% as consumers turn from beef and "potentially" shift to pork and poultry, according to a new USDA report. Bovine spongiform encephalopathy (BSE) in the EU cattle herd has caused growing domestic consumer fears about meat safety with near-weekly announcements of new BSE incidences, the closing of virtually all EU beef export markets as a result of importer fears over both BSE and foot-and-mouth disease (FMD), and, the market support policy measures undertaken by the European Commission that control cattle numbers and beef production. 

NPPC Cancels World Pork Expo.  The National Pork Producers Council (NPPC) has canceled the 2001 World Pork Expo. NPPC officials said they don't want to risk a possible outbreak of food-and-mouth disease from the expected 40,000 pork producers, consumers and international visitor from some 60 countries who were expected to attend. 

GIPSA Evaluates New StarLink Test. USDA's Grain Inspection, Packers and Stockyards Administration (GIPSA) has evaluated Strategic Diagnostics, Inc. GMOQuick 4 TM Bt9 Test Kit and found that the kit's performance meets the manufacturer's claims of the identification of one StarLinkTM corn kernel in 800 corn kernels. GIPSA's verification of tests is performed on grain only, not processed foods. 

Corn Growers Praise Ag Vision Protection.  Although the energy department's budget calls for a 36% reduction in the "Industries of the Future" category, Secretary Spence Abraham is getting praise from corn growers to protecting the "Ag Vision 2020" program from reductions. 

AMI Criticizes Post Story.  American Meat Institute President J. Patrick Boyle says The Washington Post failed to quote meat industry officials in a Monday story on an E. coli outbreak even though AMI participated in four hours of interviews with reporter Joby Warrick who authored the two-part series. 

Dole Critical of Banana Settlement.  The Dole Food Co. Inc. is disappointed with and opposes the settlement between the United States and Europe of a banana dispute. The company specifically said it opposed U.S. actions to block the European Union's proposed "first-come, first-served" reform of its banana import regime. The EU had passed legislation to open its banana market within five years. In the transition to an open, tariff-only market, it had proposed the most pro free trade, open competitive system possible -- a first-come, first-served system that was to be implemented July 1, 2001, Dole says. "Dole believes, and European Union officials have stated, that this proposed first-come, first-served reform system would comply with World Trade Organization rules," the company said. "The United States has 32 import regimes where access to the United States market is allocated on a first-come, first-served basis; none are allocated on a historical reference period with licenses as negotiated by the United States Trade Representative." Dole said it believes that the United State Trade Representative never has opposed this proposed first-come, first-served system on the basis of World Trade Organization incompatibility. "The interim trade regime that the United States Trade Representative has negotiated is a continuation of a closed, managed market with guaranteed licenses that protects at historical levels certain European Union operators over Dole and other free trade advocates," Dole said. 

China Threatens Japan on Trade Flap.  KYODO NEWS reports that China has threatened a "tit-for-tat" trade battle exchange if Japan invokes an emergency curb on imports of three agricultural products from China. Katsutoshi Matsuoka, senior vice minister of agriculture, forestry and fisheries, said the suggestion was made by senior officials of the Chinese Ministry of Foreign Trade and Economic Cooperation during a meeting he had with them. The Chinese side voiced absolute opposition to Japan's move to curb imports of stone leeks, shiitake mushrooms and rushes used in tatami mats, Matsuoka said at a press conference following the meeting. Tokyo decided Thursday to impose a temporary safeguard measure on April 23, permitted under the rules of the World Trade Organization, against imports of the three agricultural products following a steep increase in shipments to Japan. The news agency says the Japanese government is expected to decide at a cabinet meeting Tuesday to amend the tariff code to allow implementation of the curb for up to 200 days, through to Nov. 8. 

Livestock May Be Destroyed.  USDA has verified that when an "extraordinary emergency," exists due to the outbreak of an animal disease, the government may dispose of livestock impacted by the disease and that the owner of the animals will be given fair market value. If, however, the owner intentionally moves or handles animals in a way that violates the law, he will receive no payment. The Code of Federal Regulations authorizes co-payments to producers through federal and state indemnity funds, with 50 percent coming from each source. If animals are exposed to a disease during interstate shipment - or if a state is unable to pay its 50% - the federal government will pay the entire amount. "Bankers and creditors should be reassured that losses from animal disease are fully covered by a cooperative federal and state indemnity program. Producers will receive fair market value, as appraised by federal and state government employees, for animals depopulated due to an out break of foot and mouth disease or other animal disease," said National Cattlemen's Beef Association chief economist, Chuck Lambert. 

Monsanto May Distribute Soybean, Corn Seed.  THE ASSOCIATED PRESS reports from Rome that Monsanto will be able to distribute to Italian customers 40 tons of soy seed and 6 tons of corn seed after laboratory analyses found no trace of genetically modified seed in the supplies, according to the company. Italian police last month had sequestered the seed at a northern Italian depot in Lodi because of suspicion that genetically modified seed was in the shipment. The laboratory in Brescia, northern Italy, that analyzed the seed confirmed the lab results but declined to give any details. Earlier this month an arson attack on the Lodi depot followed accusations by Italian government officials that Monsanto had illegally imported genetically modified seed. The European Union three years ago banned genetically altered foods, saying they could pose a risk to health and the environment. 

It Sounds Like War on Livestock. BLOOMBERG NEWS reports that "rapid, pre-emptive slaughter of livestock" is needed to slow the epidemic of foot-and- mouth disease plaguing Great Britain. An aggressive program of "ring culling," where healthy animals on farms bordering infection sites are slaughtered, could stop the disease from spreading much beyond its current range, according to a team of researchers from the London Imperial College of Medicine. "Extensive culling is, sadly, the only option for controlling the current British epidemic," the team wrote in a paper to appear today (Friday) in the journal Science. "It is essential that the control measures now in place are maintained during the long decay phase of the epidemic to ensure eradication." 

Maryland Bans GM Fish.  The governor of Maryland has signed a law banning the raising of genetically modified fish unless the fish are in ponds or lakes that do not connect to other state waterways. "Growers also must ensure that the fish cannot escape by any other means, such as by birds dropping them after plucking them from the water," the article notes. The law signed by Gov. Parris Glendening on Tuesday is believed to be the first of its kind in the nation, said its sponsor, Democratic Delegate Dan Morhaim. Morhaim said Thursday that he believed it was important to pass a law specifically applying to transgenic species - those whose genes have been modified. State law already regulates raising of hybrids of native species, such as rockfish. "All the laws that have been written have not included the recent ability we've acquired to manipulate species genetically," Morhaim said. "So, I felt it was necessary to be explicit about that part." 

Bosworth Forest Service Chief.  Agriculture Secretary Ann M. Veneman has named Dale N. Bosworth as the new chief of the Forest Service. Bosworth succeeds former chief Mike Dombeck who retired from federal service March 31. "Dale Bosworth is a veteran forester who has devoted his career to the Forest Service," said Veneman. "His background and experience will make him a great addition to our team. I am pleased to announce his selection as the 15th chief of USDA's Forest Service." Bosworth currently serves as regional forester for the Forest Service's Northern Region, which include northern Idaho, Montana, North Dakota and northwestern South Dakota. As Forest Service chief, Bosworth will oversee an organization of over 30,000 employees and a budget of $4.6 billion. Prior to his current assignment, Bosworth was the regional forester in the Intermountain Region and deputy regional forester in the Pacific Southwest Region of the Forest Service. He also has worked as a forest supervisor and district ranger. Bosworth is a native of California and second-generation forester and Forest Service employee. He graduated from the University of Idaho in 1966 with a bachelor of science degree in forestry. 
 

April 12, 2001

OECD Threatens GSM Program. Sens. Tom Harkin (D-IA) and Max Baucus (D-MT) have called on Secretary of Agriculture Ann Veneman and Treasury Secretary Paul O'Neil not to accept a proposal for the United States to greatly weaken USDA's general sales manager (GSM) agricultural export credit guarantee program. The senators say the threat comes during the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) meetings now going on in Paris. The OECD proposal would essentially eliminate the long-term GSM-103 program, cut roughly in half the time allowed for repayment of other GSM credit and increase premiums and fees for GSM credit guarantees. 

Dorgan Bill Gives U.S. Farmers Price Break. Sen. Byron Dorgan (D-ND) has introduced a bill (S 532) designed to allow Canadian pesticides to be distributed and sold in the United States. The legislation would amend the Federal Insecticide, Fungicide, and Rodenticide Act (FIFRA) to permit a state to register a Canadian pesticide for distribution and use within that state. The legislation is co-sponsored by Sens. Max Baucus (D-MT), Conrad Burns (R-MT), Tom Daschle (D-SD), Tim Johnson (D-SD) and Kent Conrad (D-ND). 

U.S., EU Resolve Banana Dispute.  The United States and the European Commission have resolved their long-standing dispute over bananas. The new regime will provide a transition to a tariff-only system by 2006. During the transition, bananas will be imported into the European Union through import licenses distributed on the basis of past trade. 

Study's Validity Questioned.  The American Crop Protection Association and the Analytical Environmental Immunochemical Consortium say they are concerned about the scientific validity of a recently published study that challenges the accuracy and reliability of lateral flow immunological or "strip" tests used to detect biotech ingredients. ACPA and AEIC maintain that when validated and properly used, both protein and DNA-based strip tests are effective tools for detecting biotech-derived grains and oilseeds. 

Food Processors Call for Budget Targeting.  The National Food Processors Association (NFPA) strongly supports "adequate funding" for effective food safety programs by the Food and Drug Administration and the U.S. Department of Agriculture's Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS) but advocates setting priorities in research, risk assessment, education and surveillance. John Cady, NFPA president and CEO, said that would ensure that FDA's "limited resources will be targeted toward reducing risk associated with food-borne illness" Cady also noted that NFPA supports adequate resources for FSIS, but added that further reforms are needed at the agency to ensure that "unnecessary layers of regulation are promptly removed." 

Dietary Supplement Safety Touted.  John Cordaro, president and CEO of the Council for Responsible Nutrition, criticizes "false statements (that) seriously damage consumer confidence in a wide range of useful and beneficial products" by linking those products to "serious public health issues" such as bovine spongiform encephalopathy (BSE) or mad cow disease. 

Canada Angry Over Potato Decision.  Canada has accused the United States of changing its mind at the last moment over a decision to partly lift a ban on potato imports from the tiny east coast province of Prince Edward Island, REUTERS reports. Angry officials gave Washington 24 hours to bow to Ottawa's demands. "I tell you that it's very disappointing when somebody says something, and says they'll follow it up with a letter, and do that letter, and then say later that isn't what they mean in the letter," Canadian Agriculture Minister Lyle Vanclief complained to reporters. Vanclief's remarks came only a day after he said U.S. agriculture officials had told Canada the United States had partly lifted a costly six-month ban on the import of potatoes from Prince Edward Island (PEI) and shipments could start within 48 hours. Robert Carberry, director of the Canadian Food Inspection Agency's plant health and production division, said he had received a phone call Wednesday morning from the same officials insisting that all PEI potatoes due to be moved domestically -- including those destined for the United States -- be washed and chemically treated first. The Canadian potato industry opposes that on cost grounds and because Ottawa said it was sure Washington had dropped this stipulation after earlier negotiations. 

U.S., Australia Seek FTA Talks.  THE ASSOCIATED PRESS reports from Canberra that there is growing support in the United States for a two-way free trade agreement with Australia, according to Trade Minister Mark Vaile. On his first day back from discussions with U.S. officials in Washington, Vaile said the idea of a trade pact between the two nations "was well received by all with whom I spoke." Vaile held talks with U.S. Trade Representative Robert Zoellick, Secretary of Agriculture Ann Veneman, President George W. Bush's economic adviser Larry Lindsay and members of Congress. "Australia now has some important U.S. allies keen on investigating an FTA, including the Chamber of Commerce and key members of Congress involved in formulating U.S. trade policy," Vaile said in a statement. 

USDA Will Buy Potatoes.  USDA will offer to buy $10.25 million of the 2000 U.S. russet potato crop to help producers recover from falling prices due to a record harvest. The potatoes will be used for donations to food institutions, for livestock feed and ethanol production. Increased harvested acreage and record yields in 2000 combined to push russet potato production past 500 million hundredweight for the first time in history, prompting grower prices to plummet, USDA said. USDA said the March season average potato grower price for all uses was $5.62 per hundredweight, down 10% from last year and the lowest since 1997. Details of the proposal will be published in the Federal Register Friday. 

Irish At Last Will Celebrate St. Pat's Day. St Patrick's Day, the biggest event in Ireland's national calendar, is going ahead two months later than planned after a foot-and-mouth disease outbreak forced organizers to call off celebrations in March, REUTERS reports from Dublin. The annual national festival, which traditionally attracts more than a million people, will be held May 18-20, officials said. "We are delighted and relieved to finally have a date to work towards. It's been a long wait," Aine McCann at the St Patrick's Festival Board in Dublin told the news agency. The article says the postponement of St Patrick's Day festivities on March 17 to mark the death of Ireland's patron saint caused bitter disappointment both in Ireland and among thousands of Irish abroad who travel home each year for the weekend. 

UK Farmers Leave the Land.  REUTERS reports that thousands of UK farmers have already left their jobs and many more will be forced to hang up their pitchforks for the last time because of Britain's foot-and-mouth epidemic. Industry officials said Britain's Labor government, bent on restructuring the outdated and far from cost-effective industry, will no doubt welcome smaller family farms falling by the wayside, but warned that some will not go without a fight -- or hefty compensation. "There certainly has been a massive reduction in the number of farmers in recent years. Over the last two years up to June last year more than 51,000 farmers and farm workers left the industry," a spokeswoman at the National Farmers Union told the news agency. "Unfortunately the reality is that foot-and-mouth disease is likely to add to those figures. We believe that some farmers who have had all of their stock slaughtered won't see the point in investing the time, energy and expense in returning." 

April 11, 2001

Missouri River Called Most Endangered. A group called American Rivers says the Missouri River is the nation's most endangered. Several Missouri River species face extinction unless the Army Corps of Engineers changes dam operations to provide more natural water flows and dramatically accelerates efforts to restore habitat, according to an AR report. 

Protein Imports Still Bedevil Milk Industry. The National Milk Producers Federation is urging dairy industry leaders and federal lawmakers to work closely to help develop solutions to the milk protein concentrate (MPC) problem that has developed with MPC imports. NMPF estimates the MPC imports have increased by more than 600% since 1995. 

Leahy Seeks Soda Restrictions. Sen. Patrick Leahy (D-VT) has introduced a bill to give the agriculture Secretary added authority to restrict soda sales in schools. Leady's "The Better Nutrition for School Children Act of 2001" tightens USDA regulations under the National School Lunch Program. Current law bars schools from selling unhealthy drinks and snacks during meals, but some schools are skirting the regulations by giving away soft drinks during meals. 

FSIS States Position to Post. FSIS In a mid-March letter to Joby Warrick, author of a two-part Washington Post series on the failures of the nation's beef inspection system, and NBC's Dateline, USDA's Food Safety and Inspection Service provided materials and background information designed to present the agency's activities in the best possible context. 

FDA Approves Irradiation for Feed.  The Food and Drug Administration Tuesday approved a food additive petition for an irradiation process that can be used on all animal feed and feed ingredients, including pet treats, as a means of reducing the risk of Salmonella contamination. The procedure is intended to reduce the food-borne pathogens that may be present in these feeds. 
 

FAO Sees More Food Grains.  The U.N. Food and Agriculture Organization projects slightly more world food grain production this year and a corresponding weakness in prices as global economic growth slackens, REUTERS reports from Rome. FAO said it expected an increase of almost 2% year-on-year in world cereal output in 2001 to 1.889 billion tons, 35 million tons more than 2000 and near the average of the past five years. FAO said that as growth in cereal use was expected to continue in the coming 2001-2002 season, output at this level would be insufficient to meet global demand for a second straight year, leading to a further cut in world cereal stocks. In its latest food outlook report, FAO said international cereal prices remained depressed and prospects were not encouraging.

U.S. Ban on EU Meat Should Be Eased.  REUTERS reports a European Commission Official said Tuesday the United States should roll back its blanket import ban on European Union livestock and raw meat to only countries affected by foot-and-mouth disease. "They cover the whole of the European Union although outbreaks were limited to a few (countries)," Guenter Burghardt, head of the EC delegation to the United States said. "I urge (the United States) not to cover countries where the problem has not arisen," he told the news agency in an interview after speaking at a luncheon here. 

Potato Ban Partial Lifting Due. Canadian Agriculture Minister Lyle Vanclief said Tuesday the United States had agreed to partially lift its six-month ban on potatoes from Prince Edward Island, in the next 48 hours, the CBC reported. A REUTERS article says the broadcasting company reports that Vanclief told a meeting of the island's potato growers in Charlottetown that he had received the news while flying up to talk to them about the ban, which has hit the island hard. Last October, the United States slapped an export ban on PEI potatoes after a rare fungus was found in one section of one field on the island. Vanclief told the meeting the United States had agreed to start accepting the import of potatoes from the areas furthest removed from the affected field within the next 48 hours, as long as they were washed, sprayed and passed all U.S. regulations. The news agency notes that sales of potatoes to the United States amount to half of the island's exports, or 10% of PEI's entire potato crop. Ottawa and the province have made about C$50 million ($32 million) in aid available to PEI potato producers. 

Italy Confiscates Monsanto Seed.  BLOOMBERG NEWS reports that Italian police confiscated 88 tons of soybean seed from a Monsanto Co. warehouse near Milan, suspecting the U.S. company had imported genetically modified material. GM products are banned in Italy. Agence France-Presse was credited with the report which cited the company. The seizure is the second in two weeks. Monsanto, a unit of U.S.-based Pharmacia Corp., has developed corn and soybeans with genes that kill insects, as well as those that can tolerate the company's Roundup weed killer. The products are not approved for sale inside the European Union. An arsonist last week set fire to one of the company's Italian storage facilities, Monsanto said in a faxed statement. There haven't been any arrests in connection with the blaze. 

OECD Criticizes Member States on Trade Barriers.  REUTERS reports from Geneva that OECD officials sharply criticized member states Tuesday, for maintaining or even raising barriers to farm produce from poorer countries despite world trade accords. The officials, speaking at a Geneva news conference, also suggested some were using issues like food security and preserving the countryside to turn aside calls from agricultural exporters for them to slash subsidies to their farmers. "There is still a very high level of protection for most agricultural commodities....in some OECD member states," said Gerard Viatte, the Paris-based body's director for food, agriculture and fisheries. "Developing countries face very high barriers not only to their raw products but also to their processed agricultural goods ... We are calling for reform of these policies," Viatte declared. The OECD, the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development, often dubbed "the rich man's club," includes the 15 countries of the European Union, the United States, Japan, Canada, Australia and New Zealand as well as emerging economies like South Korea and Mexico. The news agency notes its mandate is to promote and coordinate policies aimed at improving economic and social welfare in member states and to stimulate efforts by them to help developing countries. 
 

April 10, 2001

Budget Reductions for Conservation 'Shocking.'  The American Farmland Trust says proposed reductions in some conservation and farm land protection programs in the USDA budget announced Monday gave farmers and ranchers "a nasty shock." Programs to be "zeroed out," AFT notes, include those that offer farmers incentives to protect water supplies, create wildlife habitat on farmland, and permanently protect their farmland from sprawling development. 

Pork Producers Ask Court for Help. The Michigan Pork Producers Association and the National Pork Producers Council (NPPC) have asked a Michigan court that is hearing the legal challenge to their settlement with USDA to enter an injunction against future trespassing and harassment. The action was taken in the wake of a March 26 occupation of NPPC's Washington, DC, offices. 

Bill for Animal Disease Study Approved. A bill to commission a study of current and potential prevention measures for animal diseases such as bovine spongiform encephalopathy (BSE) and foot and mouth disease (FMD) passed by unanimous consent in the Senate late last week. The bill, sponsored by Sen. Ben "Nighthorse" Campbell (R-CO) and amended by Sen. Orrin Hatch (R-UT), would require the Secretary of Agriculture to submit a report to both the Senate and House Agriculture Committees. 
 

Bush Pares $2.3 Billion from Environment.  The Bush budget proposal for environmental programs would be pared back about $2.3 billion, REUTERS reports. The budget would prohibit the United States from spending any money to implement the 1997 Kyoto treaty designed to reduce greenhouse gas emissions suspected of contributing to global warming. Bush is requesting $26.4 billion for federal natural resources and environment programs for the fiscal year that begins October 1, down from the $28.7 billion that was planned for the current fiscal year. Among the federal programs included are clean air and clean water protections, research on global warming, national park and national forest activities and land conservation. The programs are run by several departments and agencies, including the Environmental Protection Agency and the Agriculture and Interior Departments. 

Whitman ‘Proud' of EPA Budget. Environmental Protection Agency Administrator Christine Whitman says she's "proud" of the Bush administration's budget proposal for her agency. The $7.3 billion fiscal year 2002 proposal is a $56 million increase over the budget request from last year and "reflects this administration's commitment to build partnerships across America to make our air cleaner, our water purer and our land better protected," Whitman said. The budget includes a new $25 million program of state grants--money to improve and bolster enforcement efforts in the states to reflect individual state priorities. "In some cases, that will mean prosecution. In others, it will mean compliance assistance," said Whitman. "But no matter which course is chosen, it will produce the best possible result in each individual situation." A second $25 million grant program is aimed at improvements to the states environmental information systems. This information partnership will allow states to produce more accurate and useful environment assessments. Whitman explained, "When it comes to cleaning the environment, information is power -- the power to make the right decisions to achieve the best results." The budget also proposes $2.1 billion in grants to states for water infrastructure needs. 

EU Seeks Support for Kyoto without U.S.  REUTERS reports from Tokyo that the European Union has gathered strong support for pushing ahead with a 1997 deal to combat global warming, despite Washington's rejection of the pact. Swedish Environment Minister Kjell Larsson said the special EU delegation had been encouraged by the response they received in China, Iran and Russia although Japan, where the Kyoto treaty was signed, appeared to be holding out hope for U.S. involvement. "We appreciate the Japanese government for their hope that the United States will come back," he said. "But we must act on what we really hear from the United States." Larsson told a news conference. "We had quite a positive statement and quite a positive message from Iran and also from Russia and China about going on even without the United States. I think we have very strong support from all countries but the United States." The EU says it is determined to push ahead with ratifying the treaty to cut greenhouse gas emissions in the wake of last month's announcement by U.S. President George W. Bush that he would no longer back the Kyoto Protocol. 

Japan Curbs Chinese Imports.  Japan has imposed emergency import restrictions on imports from China of leeks, shiitake mushrooms and a special straw in an effort to protect Japanese farmers from cheap produce imports, REUTERS reports. Japan considers the restrictions "safeguards" permitted under World Trade Organization (WTO) rules. But the action risks igniting diplomatic friction between the two Asian neighbours. "In applying the safeguard measure, it is necessary to secure consistency with WTO rules based on the fact that the measure is an exceptional one for an emergency," Foreign Minister Yohei Kono said. Under the plan, Tokyo will raise tariff duties for up to 200 days from April 23, after notifying the WTO, to cover differences between domestic wholesale prices and import prices, Minister of Economy, Trade and Industry, Takeo Hiranuma told a news conference. 

Democrats Will Fight Bush Reductions. REUTERS reports that congressional Democrats vow to fight President Bush's proposed budget reductions for environmental protection, children's health care and other programs. "Analysts agreed that many of the cuts Bush is seeking will not survive and that the fiscal 2002 budget's price tag is almost certain to rise," the news agency said. "Like so many presidential budgets, this one is also probably dead on arrival," said Marshall Wittman, of the conservative Hudson Institute. He predicted Congress would add billions of dollars to favored programs. After last week's push in the Senate by Democrats and a few moderate Republicans to slice Bush's $1.6 trillion 10-year tax cut by 25% and abandon his proposed limits on spending, Democrats were ready to take on the Republican White House. "When key indicators tell us that there is an economic slowdown, the president has sent a plan that ignores the needs of average A