ANIMALNET JUNE 12, 2000 -- II

Hog farming: the price of bringing home the bacon
Intensive pig farming may be the future on the prairies
Whalers bring home blubber
In other words; factory farms fuelled by society's appetite for meat
No need to flap over Pigeon health risk, says minister
Animal transport rules being ignored
South Americans to tackle EU non-tariff barriers
Lifelines : trumping bacterial resistance
Who issues antibiotic alert
Dekalb to access genomics Œengineı
Pufferfish: sushi or science?
Temecula, Calif.-area land purchase to aid environment,
Endangered species
Ruling beaches Makah tribe whaling canoes
Islanders urged to enjoy wildlife at a distance
Lip service wonıt save salmon: too few river guardians
Salmon protection becoming a joke
Twenty pork research projects generate positive results
Animal experiments: give us more leeway, say scientist
Ranchers seek compensation for cattle killed by wolves
Customs seizes illegal fish; one in four U.S. anglers violated game laws

AnimalNet is produced by researchers at the Agri-Food Risk Management and
Communication Project at the University of Guelph, is edited by  Wendy
Powell (wpowell@uoguelph.ca)  and Douglas Powell (dpowell@uoguelph.ca), and
is supported by the Ontario Cattlemen's Association, the U.S. National Pork
Producers, U.S. National Food Processors Association, Dairy Farmers of
Canada, Pfizer Animal Health Group, Pioneer Hi-Bred Limited (Canada),
Canadian Animal Health Institute, Dairy Farmers of Ontario, Meat & Livestock
Australia, Canadian Pork Council, Ontario Egg Producers, Ontario Farm Animal
Council, U.S. National Cattlemens Beef Association, the Rutgers Food Risk
Analysis Initiative, Ag-West Biotech, Land O' Lakes Feed, Capital Health,
Animal Industry Foundation, American Feed Industry Assn., the Ontario
Soybean Growers Marketing Board, Food Indsutry Environmental Network,
Canadian Poultry and Egg Processors, Chicken Farmers of Canada, MDS Nordion,
American Meat Institute, USDA Veterinary Services (Fort Collins) Alberta
Farm Animal Council, and the Agricultural Adaptation Council (CanAdapt
Program).

archived at:
http://www.plant.uoguelph.ca/safefood/archives/animalnet-archives.htm

HOG FARMING: THE PRICE OF BRINGING HOME THE BACON
INTENSIVE PIG FARMING MAY BE THE FUTURE ON THE PRAIRIES,
BUT THERE CAN BE A HIGH ENVIRONMENTAL COST FOR PORK FACTORIES.
June 12, 2000
The Globe and Mail
Andrew Nikiforuk
http://www.theglobeandmail.com/gam/Health/20000612/UHOGGN.html
Calgary -- The Taiwan Sugar Company, one of Taiwan's largest Crown
corporations, has been cited as proposing setting up a hog operation capable
of producing 150,000 hogs a year, and untreated sewage equivalent to what
might be produced by 240,000 people.
Project manager Clarence Froese, partner in a Winnipeg-based engineering
firm
that specializes in hog barns, was cited as saying that would make it one of
the largest hog factories in Canada.
Mr. Froese, was cited as explaining that corporations such as Manitoba's
Elite Swine and Quebec's Shur-Gain now operate hog systems that produce
500,000 hogs annually, adding, "But I can understand why people in Foremost,
Alberta,
would perceive Taiwan Sugar to be extremely large."
Lisa Bechthold, who lives just three kilometres from the proposed site,
considers the proposed farm more than just unusually large. She and hundreds
of
residents of the sparsely populated County of Forty Mile, just west of
Lethbridge, are, according to this story, raising a herd of questions about
water quality, air pollution, inadequate regulations, public health risks
and the application of manure.
Ms. Bechthold, was quoted as saying, "History has shown throughout the world
that these large hog factories have a negative environmental, health and
social impact on the communities in which they are located. We're not
pushovers here."
This story explained that the battle now dividing farmers and ranchers in
the Palliser Triangle has become a common drama throughout Canada. One
recent Manitoba study was cited as noting that "large-scale corporate hog
production is one of the most contentious issues to confront rural North
America in recent history."
And the County of Forty Mile is, this story says, no exception. Proponents
of the
$41-million project, which includes 14 separate barns spread out over a
30-kilometre area, were cited as saying that it will provide 40 jobs, a
ready market for local lentils and feed grains and free organic fertilizer
for local farmers. Ken Kultgen, a farmer and Mayor of Foremost, a village of
500 people, was quoted as saying, "We are pretty excited about it. The whole
thing works great here because we don't have many people."
This story further explained that in Alberta, factory farms are exempt from
property and business taxes, and so TSC's multimillion-dollar facility will
pay as little as $1,500 in taxes a year. A sunflower seed company located on
just a quarter hectare of land in the county, pays $30,000 a year because,
this story explained, it's listed as a commercial property.



WHALERS BRING HOME BLUBBER
June 12, 2000
The Associated Press
OSLO, Norway -- This story explained that Norway's whalers are in the midst
of a hotly protested hunt, knowing that blubber - once considered a prize of
their backbreaking and dangerous arctic voyages - is just about worthless to
them.
Whale blubber was, according to this story, once a treasure in Norway and
used in a wide range of products. Now, uses are few, and the price is so low
that hunters were cited as saying that it is hardly worth hauling to land,
where 800 tons of the pearly fat is already frozen in northern warehouses
from past hunts.
This story explained that the Norwegian Fish Sales Association lowered the
minimum blubber price to less than a penny a pound this year, from 15 cents
a pound last year.
Norway resumed commercial hunts in 1993 despite a nonbinding global ban, but
the government voluntarily was cited as prohibiting all exports of whale
products, fearing that would intensify already negative world opinion.
Norwegians eat the red meat of whales as steaks and sausages but have, this
story says, no taste for the blubber.
Twenty years ago, Norway exported much of its whale blubber to Japan, where,
this story explained, it is considered a delicacy and fetches $25 to $37 a
pound. Japanese whalers kill, this story says, more than 400 minke whales a
year for research and sell the meat and blubber at home.
Such prices would make the frozen "blubber mountain," as Norwegians have
been cited as calling their stockpile, worth tens of millions of dollars,
and whalers are pushing to resume exports.



IN OTHER WORDS; FACTORY FARMS FUELLED BY SOCIETY'S APPETITE FOR MEAT
June 12, 2000
The Kingston Whig-Standard
Editorial
Page 6
Column
Christine Overall
Overall wrote in this editorial that she thinks that the Walkerton E. coli
epidemic could be a graphic illustration of the price we pay for our love
affair with meat.
Infections from toxic forms of E. coli are, this editorial argues,
correlated with high densities of cattle. A study sponsored by Health Canada
was cited as finding that living in an agricultural region with large
numbers of cattle could be an important risk factor for E. coli infection.
Cattle manure has, according to this story, been shown to be a source of E.
coli contamination not only in Canada, but also in the United States,
Argentina and Scotland.
This editorial explained that the beleaguered village of Walkerton is
situated in one of several areas in Southern Ontario with the highest number
of cattle per cultivated area. Southwestern Ontario has, this editorial
notes, the dubious distinction of having up to 100 animals per hectare in
some areas filled with factory farms.
Factory farms are, according to this editorial, proliferating in Ontario
because both land and feed grain are relatively cheap. The lack of
environmental protections, this editorial argues, and the government goal of
wooing big agribusiness must also be an incentive for those who want to make
money from meat.
Why, this editorial asks, do we have factory farms? Obviously, it's in order
to supply people with more and more beef, pork and lamb.--love those lamb
factory farms--wp
Overall argues that the words beef, pork and lamb are, of course,
euphemisms. They are, according to Overall, a polite way of referring to the
dead bodies of cattle, pigs and young sheep.
The cultivation of vast numbers of meat animals is, according to this
editorial, contributing to the degradation of our water supplies through
contamination by manure. And if we are not willing to terminate or at least
moderate our love affair with meat, we can, Overall tells us, anticipate
growing threats to human life and health.
Animals that are, according to this editorial, raised to satisfy our meat
cravings mostly have short and miserable lives. The idyllic version of farm
animals' life that urban folks are still encouraged to believe suggests,
this editorial says, that cows, pigs, sheep and chickens enjoy bucolic days
out in the sunshine, feeding and socializing.
This editorial explained that crammed into farm warehouses, fed
automatically, cut off from social contacts with others of their species,
these animals live their lives in order to be killed.
Some people have, overall explained, no moral qualms about the casual
cruelties of factory farming.
This editorial explained that eating meat carries heavy environmental costs.
Devoting precious land to the production of cattle is, according to Overall,
an inefficient use of resources. According to one estimate, 95 litres of
water are needed to produce half a kilogram of wheat, but it takes 9,500
litres of water to produce half a kilogram of beef. One acre of prime
farmland can produce 8,165 kilograms of potatoes, but only 115 kilograms of
beef.--Guess thatıs why we donıt graze cattle on prime farmland-wp
On a planet where millions starve to death, rainforests and other arable
lands are, this editorial argues, being converted to cattle production.
Instead of growing food directly for human consumption, more and more
nations grow grain to feed to cattle, which are, according to this
editorial, then processed into Big Macs and other fast-food equivalents.



NO NEED TO FLAP OVER PIGEON HEALTH RISK, SAYS MINISTER
June 12, 2000
PA News
Andrew Evans, Lords Staff
The U.K. Government was cited as insisting today, despite claims to the
contrary by a Yorkshire coroner, that the pigeons in Trafalgar Square pose
no ³significant² health risk to the public.
Lord McIntosh of Haringey, for culture ministers, was quoted as saying at
question time, ³No significant risk to public health through casual contact
with feral pigeons has been proven, either in Trafalgar Square or
elsewhere.²
This story explained that the Government had no plans to take any action,
such as withdrawing the licence of the pigeon feed seller, before control of
the Square passes to London Mayor Ken Livingstone on July 3.
Tory Baroness Gardner of Parkes was cited as quoting an official of the
Public Health Laboratory Service as saying that 60% of pigeons were infected
with disease and that ³inhaling dust from dried faeces can give you an
infection,²
adding that the coroner had warned against contact with feral pigeons, and
had quoted Trafalgar Square in particular.



ANIMAL TRANSPORT RULES BEING IGNORED
June 12, 2000
PA News
Andrew Evans, Lords Staff
Agriculture Minister of State Baroness Hayman was cited as saying at
question time, that there is ³widespread non-observance² by EU countries of
the rules on the welfare of animals in transit.
She was cited as saying that the UK was backing a call by Sweden for the
issue to be debated at this monthıs meeting of EU agriculture ministers. And
Agriculture Minister Nick Brown had been cited as raising it with
Commissioner Byrne in February.
Lady Hayman, was quoted as saying,³The commissioner made clear that he,
equally, is unhappy with the current position as a reflection of the
importance that animal welfare issues within the EU should be accorded. We
hope to see action taken soon.²


SOUTH AMERICANS TO TACKLE EU NON-TARIFF BARRIERS
June 12, 2000
Reuters
Gilbert Le Gras
BUENOS AIRES -- This story explained that South American negotiators will
seek trade concessions from the European Union in a new round of talks this
week toward creating the worldıs largest free-trade agreement.
Negotiators from the Mercosur trade bloc‹comprising Argentina, Brazil,
Paraguay and Uruguay‹were cited as wanting the EU to ease health and
environmental rules and import quotas, as well as simplify customs
procedures, South American officials said.
In the first round of talks in Buenos Aires in April, the two sides were,
according to this story, unable to agree on the mandate of three working
groups‹covering goods, services and technical norms. EU officials were cited
as wanting to try launching the panels again this week. The talks, which
start on Tuesday, are, this story explained, part of a process aimed at
creating a free trade zone between the European Union and Mercosur, linking
680 million people by 2005.
This story further explained that the EU is the principal destination of
Mercosur goods as well as its chief importer. The four South American
countries exported $20 billion to the EU in 1998 and imported $26 billion.
The EU is, this story says, not the only bloc attempting to forge a free
trade zone with Mercosur. The United States is, this story explained,
promoting a Free Trade Area of the Americas (FTAA), but the 2005 deadline
for that accord is generally considered unrealistic since U.S. President
Bill Clinton failed to obtain fast-track negotiating authority from
Congress.



LIFELINES : TRUMPING BACTERIAL RESISTANCE
June 12, 2000
Nature Science Update
Philip Ball
http://helix.nature.com/nsu/000615/000615-3.html
Chi-Huey Wong and colleagues at the Scripps Research Institute in California
explored ways of giving aminoglycosides a Œnon-naturalı structure that is
harder for bacterial enzymes to recognize. Fortuitously, their solution‹to
link two aminoglycoside molecules together to form a Œdimerı‹also increased
the antibioticıs potency.
Wongıs group based their design on the simplest aminoglycoside, Œneamineı,
which has, this story explained, a similar structure to sucrose. The
researchers were cited as finding that neamine seems to bind in pairs to the
protein-making machinery (the Œribosomeı) of the bacterial cells. So they
were cited as postulating that a neamine dimer might not only confuse the
bacteriumıs defences but also throw a heftier spanner into the bacterial
works by providing both Œhooksı in the same package.



WHO ISSUES ANTIBIOTIC ALERT
June 12, 2000
The Associated Press
Lauran Neergaard, AP Medical Writer
WASHINGTON -- The World Health Organization was cited as warning on Monday
that increasingly drug-resistant infections in rich and developing nations
alike are threatening to make once-treatable diseases incurable.
Scientists have been cited as urging action for years to fight the growing
problem of infections becoming impervious to treatment. The WHOıs new report
adds to the alarm.
WHO infectious diseases chief Dr. David Heymann, was quoted as saying,
³Weıre losing windows of opportunity. Itıs something we have to really
address immediately or weıre going to start losing our antibiotics.²
Dr. Jeffrey Koplan, director of the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and
Prevention, who helped WHO unveil the report, was quoted as saying, ³This is
a major problem for us, and it isnıt going to go away. We use the same
antibiotics as other countries do,² so resistance in one country is bad news
for everybody.
The WHO report was cited as saying that U.S. and Canadian doctors are
estimated to overprescribe antibiotics by 50 per cent.
Impoverished developing countries have, this story explained,  the opposite
problem. Many patients canıt afford the full course needed to cure an
infection. Antibiotics may, this story says, be sold at market stalls where
people buy a few doses without a doctorıs exam. In Vietnam in 1997,
researchers were cited as finding that more than 70 per cent of patients
were prescribed inadequate doses to cure serious infections.
WHO was cited as saying that in the Philippines, people mistakenly use low
doses of an anti-tuberculosis drug as a ³lung vitamin.²
Half the worldıs antibiotics are, this story explained, used on the farm,
sometimes to treat illness but mostly to help healthy animals grow bigger.
WHO was cited as saying that encourages drug-resistant germs that cause food
poisoning.
This story further explained that gonorrhea was once easily curable with
penicillin and tetracycline. Heymann was quoted as saying, ³Today, you canıt
touch it anywhere in the world with those drugs.²
In Estonia, Latvia, and parts of Russia and China, more than 10 per cent of
tuberculosis patients have, according to this story, strains resistant to
two powerful medicines. Overall, up to 2 per cent of the worldıs 16 million
TB sufferers have, this story explained, multi-drug resistant strains,
particularly frightening because TB is airborne, spread when people cough.
Malaria, the mosquito-spread infection that kills a million people a year,
is, this story says, resistant to the top medication 80 per cent of the
time.
This story explained that nobody counts deaths from drug-resistant
infections. The CDC was cited as saying that 88,000 Americans a year die of
infections they catch in the hospital, and many are resistant to at least
one antibiotic, complicating treatment attempts.
The WHO was cited as saying that wiser use of antimicrobial drugs is the
solution. It was cited as recommending increased funding to help poor
countries afford enough antibiotics, and education for poor and rich nations
alike to avoid misuse.
WHO also was cited as recommending that human antibiotics not be used as
growth promoters for animals. Europe already has banned several such drugs.
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration has been cited as debating stricter
rules here for several years, but is under industry pressure not to tighten
animal drug restrictions.



DEKALB TO ACCESS GENOMICS ŒENGINEı
June 12, 2000
Feedstuffs
Monsanto Agriculture Co. has changed the name of the companyıs swine
genetics business to DeKalb Choice Genetics and has been cited as committing
itself to using aggressive technology, including bioinformatics and
genomics, to discover and develop high-performance swine genetics, according
to an announcement at the World Pork Expo yesterday. Company officials, were
cited as emphasizing that genomics involves selection through natural,
traditional breeding processes and not genetic modification, stated that
although this technology is not unique to DeKalb, the ³genomics engine² that
the companyıs researchers can access through Monsanto ³is of a scale no
other swine genetics company can likely replicate.²



PUFFERFISH: SUSHI OR SCIENCE?
June 12, 2000
Wired News
Kristen Philipkoski
http://www.wired.com/news/print/0,1294,36911,00.html
This story explained that a researcher in Berkeley, California is mapping
the genome of the pufferfish, despite having practically no funds to finish
the project. Sydney Brenner of the Molecular Science Institute was cited as
believing that deciphering the genes of the Japanese delicacy is the fastest
way to help researchers locate human genes, because its genome has no
superfluous material.
This story explained that in humans, the part of the genome that makes up
active genes is only about 3 per cent. The rest is called ³junk DNA,²
although scientists have been cited as arguing about whether junk DNA has
any function. The pufferfish, however, has, this story explained,
practically no junk DNA. The pufferfish, also known as Fugu, and the human
genome both have, according to this story, about the same number of
genes‹about 50,000 by Brennerıs estimation (there is much debate over how
many genes there actually are). All of the Fugu DNA is, this story says,
compressed into only about 375 million chemical letters, while humans have
more than 3 billion.



TEMECULA, CALIF.-AREA LAND PURCHASE TO AID ENVIRONMENT,
ENDANGERED SPECIES
June 12, 2000
Knight-Ridder Tribune
Environment, Recycling
Randyl Drummer, The Business Press,
Ontario, Calif. -- Riverside County has been cited as finalizing its
purchase of the 1,376-acre Johnson Ranch near Temecula in one of the
regionıs largest open space acquisitions by a government agency.
The San Francisco-based Trust for Public Land, a nonprofit national land
conservation group, was cited as helping facilitate the countyıs purchase,
considered a cornerstone in its efforts to develop a multiple species
protection plan that protects both the environment and the ability of
developers to build
new housing.
The trust has been cited as assisting in several large open-space
acquisitions in the Inland Empire, including a $20-million deal to complete
the purchase of
nearly a half-million acres of former railroad land in the Mojave Desert to
protect the endangered desert tortoise.
In September, the county Board of Supervisors agreed to spend $24 million to
buy the ranch to use as open space for endangered and threatened animals and
plants.



RULING BEACHES MAKAH TRIBE WHALING CANOES
June 10, 2000
The Associated Press
SEATTLE -- A tribal lawyer was cited as saying that Makah whaling canoes are
likely to be beached for only a few months by an appeals court ruling that
ordered another environmental review of the tribeıs grey whale hunts.
Meanwhile, anti-whaling activists were cited as saying that they were elated
by the ruling Friday from a three-judge panel of the 9th U.S. Circuit Court
of Appeals, which they hope will lead to a permanent halt to the hunt. This
story explained that the case now goes back to federal court in Tacoma for
additional proceedings, including the new environmental study by the
National Marine Fisheries Service. John Arum, Seattle-based lawyer for the
tribe, whose reservation lies at the extreme northwestern tip of Washington
state, was quoted as saying, ``Itıs very important to recognize that this is
really a temporary setback for the tribe. The court in no way questioned the
fact that the Makah have a treaty right to take whales.ıı



ISLANDERS URGED TO ENJOY WILDLIFE AT A DISTANCE
June 10, 2000
Summerside Journal Pioneer
Island Harvest
A11
News
CHARLOTTETOWN -- The Fish and Wildlife Division of the P.E.I. Department of
Fisheries, Aquaculture and Environment, was cited as advising that young
birds and mammals found in Island backyards, fields and woodlots should be
left alone.
The provinceıs wildlife biologist Randy Dibblee, was quoted as saying,
``Some people have been picking up young raccoons and robins and then
calling the Fish and Wildlife Division to rescue them. In many cases, these
animals had
temporarily strayed from the adult female and would have been recovered by
her eventually.ıı
According to Dibblee, people who pick up fledgling birds and young mammals
are not doing wild animals any favour and may be risking their own health,
adding, ``Removing wildlife from their natural environments exposes them to
unnecessary stress and probable eventual death. Rarely will a young animal
survive but those that do, such as young raccoons, will become problem
animals as they reach maturity. Attempts to re-introduce captive wildlife
back to the wild will fail because the animal has not learned to survive on
its own.ıı



LIP SERVICE WONıT SAVE SALMON: TOO FEW RIVER GUARDIANS WATCHING DWINDLING
SALMON
June 10, 2000
The Telegram (St. Johnıs)
page 10
Column
Joe Walsh
This story asks, is there someone in Ottawa with a death wish when it comes
to preserving the natural resources we have in Newfoundland? The latest fish
species that is, according to this story, seeing its numbers shrink very
quickly is
the Atlantic salmon. Yet the only thing federal officials have been cited as
offering so far is talk about co-operation with other countries to try to
save the
salmon.
It is true, this story explained, there is a worldwide decline in Atlantic
salmon stocks. Federal Fisheries Minister Herb Dhaliwal has, according to
this story, to put his money where his mouth is. After putting millions of
dollars into salmon enhancement in Newfoundland in the past, Ottawa has,
this story says, cut back to the point where there is very little, if any,
enhancement now taking place.
The lack of scientific research into dwindling salmon stocks is, this story
explained, conspicuous by its absence. Dozens of theories abound as to why
young salmon are not returning from the sea after they leave the rivers, but
there is, this story says, little specific scientific information.
This story further explained that we do know from the Atlantic Salmon
Federation, a lobby group dedicated to preserving the salmon, that more than
half the rivers in Atlantic Canada monitored by federal Fisheries failed to
reach even minimum spawning targets last year.
Besides spending millions on salmon enhancement, former federal fisheries
ministers like John Crosbie made, according to this story, extra efforts to
protect the stocks by buying back commercial salmon licences. Crosbie and
his colleagues realized the Atlantic salmon was worth more than its weight
in gold to the provinceıs tourism industry.
When stocks of Atlantic salmon reach the point of extinction, federal
fisheries managers will come to their rescue. Unfortunately, as history has
shown, it will be too little, too late.



SALMON PROTECTION BECOMING A JOKE
June 10, 2000
The St. Johnıs Telegram
Outdoors
page 19
Bill Power
In this related story: Salmon river protection keeps getting a little
crazier each year and thatıs making salmon anglers become more angry with
each passing season. This story explained that the latest insane situation
occurred Tuesday this week on rivers in zones 9 to 12, where the angling
season got under way without the protection of river guardians. Popular
rivers in these zones include Northwest Trepassey, Salmonier and Little
Salmonier, Branch, Southeast and Northeast Placentia, Cape Roger, Garnish,
Long Harbour, Garia and Grandyıs Brook, to name a few. The reason river
guardians were, according to this story, not at work was due to a contract
dispute between the Newfoundland and Labrador Fishery Guardians Association
and Shannahanıs Security of St. Johnıs. The guardians were cited as accusing
the company of not negotiating in good faith.
Up to Wednesday the dispute had, this story explained, not been settled,
much to the delight of salmon poachers. Power has been told poachers are
already selling illegally caught salmon to black market buyers in the
Placentia, Branch and Trepassey areas. On Thursday, the guardians finally
were cited as agreeing to return to work. Next week, on June 15, all rivers
on the island and Labrador will, this story says, be open.
This story further explained that Shannahanıs won the contracts for guardian
protection in the eastern and
central areas, while Seawatch, another St. Johnıs company, got the contract
for the western area. These contracts are, this story says, issued by Public
Works Canada, no doubt on behalf of DFO.
Contracting-out its responsibility for salmon river protection became, this
story explained, standard operating procedure for DFO around the mid-1980s.
River protection has, this story noted, continually eroded since then as the
quality and the quantity of guardians on our rivers continues to decline.
Poaching is, according to this story, rampant because the chance of being
caught is just about on par with winning the 6-49 or Super 7 lottery.



TWENTY PORK RESEARCH PROJECTS GENERATE POSITIVE RESULTS
June 10, 2000
Summerside Journal Pioneer
A11
Business
OTTAWA -- Edward Asnong, president of the Canadian Pork Council, was cited
as saying that twenty successful research and technology transfer projects,
which
were financed through the Hog Environmental Management Strategy (HEMS), have
produced positive results.
This story explained that these projects‹conducted by the council, its
provincial member organizations and Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada‹cover
such diverse areas as odour containment and gas reduction technologies,
manure treatment methods and soil and water quality maintenance systems.
Others looked at the assembly of information on public health implications
of hog production while some were cited as producing examples of guidelines
and strategies that can be utilized by hog producer organizations and
municipal authorities in future planning and public communications efforts.
Asnong was quoted as saying in a release,``We congratulate Agriculture and
Agri-Food Canada on this initiative to collaborate with industry
associations in identifying research and technology transfer priorities and
targeting funds to where they will achieve positive results. We look forward
to continuing cooperation with the federal government in these areas.ıı
These projects received, this story explained, 50 per cent assistance from
the HEMS, to the tune of $1 million, back in 1998.
Some 50 projects had been submitted for review and 20 had, this story says,
been approved. Summary versions of each project were publicly released
earlier this week.
Descriptions can be found at the web site http://www.canpork.ca/1999 HEMS
SYMPOSIUM.htm.
This story further explained that the hog industry in Canada generates some
$3 billion in farm cash receipts and when the value-added activity of
processing and distribution is added, the contribution to the Canadian
economy is close to $10 billion. Pork is Canadaıs most important processed
agri-food product in terms of
value of exports, exceeding $1.5 billion a year.



ANIMAL EXPERIMENTS: GIVE US MORE LEEWAY, SAY SCIENTIST
June 12, 2000
PA News
 John von Radowitz, Science Correspondent
A group of 110 of Britainıs most eminent scientists today were cited as
making an urgent appeal to the Government to allow them more freedom to
conduct animal experiments.
The scientists, all professors and leaders in their fields, were cited as
warning that unless the system is changed the UK will be overtaken by other
countries in vital areas of research.
Britain has, this story explained, the toughest controls protecting the
welfare of laboratory animals in the world.
The scientists were cited as insisting that they are not asking for animals
to be less protected. But they were cited as arguing that the regulatory
system is so bound in red tape that it is causing major delays to research
projects.
They were cited as making their point in an open letter to science minister,
Lord Sainsbury, imploring him to raise the issue with the Home Office, which
grants licences for animal experiments.
The scientists were quoted as writing, ³It can now take six months or longer
to obtain approval for a research project using animals in the UK, whilst in
other countries that permission can be obtained in weeks or even days.
Researchers using animals in the UK are already in a situation where
overseas competitors can complete a series of experiments and be exploiting
the results, before permission to start would be given in the UK. If this
situation persists or gets worse, as it has recently, it appears inevitable
that a substantial part of the UKıs research effort, in many vital areas,
will either become uncompetitive or be forced abroad,² adding that fast
moving research in biotechnology and genetic science was increasingly
dependent on animal studies.
At the same time the UKıs system of regulating the use of animals in
research was, this story explained, becoming ³more lengthy, complex,
bureaucratic and inflexible than in other leading scientific nations².
The scientists were cited as saying that they were ³deeply concerned² that
the UK may not maintain its position as a world leader in biotechnology and
biomedical science because of the obstacles in the way of animal
experiments.
They were cited as accusing the Home Office of failing to strike a fair
balance between the needs of science and industry, and the welfare of
animals.
One of the scientists who signed the letter was Oxford academic Professor
Colin Blakemore, who has, this story says, received death threats from
extreme animal rights activists.
He lives under police protection, his children have, this story says, been
threatened with kidnap, and he was the target of a letter bomb in 1998.
When the anti-vivisectionist Barry Horne went on hunger strike in prison
last year, a group called the Animal Rights Militia was cited as threatening
that if he died Prof Blakemore would be killed.
Prof Blakemore was, according to this story, targeted by animal rights
activists in the 1980s after carrying out pioneering work on blindness which
involved stitching up kittensı eyes.
A spokesman for the Department of Trade and Industry was cited as saying
that a response to the letter would be issued later today.
The move by the scientists was, this story says, strongly condemned by the
British Union for the Abolition of Vivisection which described it as
³outrageous and arrogant.²
The animal rights group was cited as pointing out that the UK was the
biggest user of laboratory animals in Europe. The BUAV was cited as saying
that in 1998 the number of animals experimented on increased for the first
time in 10 years. Since 1990 the number of experiments on genetically
modified animals in the UK‹the fastest expanding area of animal
research‹had, this story says, soared by 827%.
The group was cited as claiming that current UK legislation protecting
laboratory animals was not tough enough, and the rules were constantly being
flouted.
Michelle Thew, BUAV chief executive,was quoted as saying, ³No scientist
simply has the right to use animals merely as research tools as and when
they wish. To call for a reduction in already inadequate safeguards flies in
the face of increasing public concern over the use of animals in research at
all, and demonstrates how out of touch these researchers are with a modern,
forward-thinking public.²
Lord Sainsbury later was cited as saying that he would take up the concerns
raised in the letter with his ministerial colleagues at the Home Office.
He was cited as offering to meet a delegation from the scientists to discuss
the matter further. Lord Sainsbury was quoted as saying, ³We must find a
solution that reflects our commitment both to the science community and our
duty of care to animals involved in experiments.²



RANCHERS SEEK COMPENSATION FOR CATTLE KILLED BY WOLVES
June 11, 200
The Calgary Herald
D1 / FRONT
Business
Emma Poole, Calgary Herald
This story explained that the Alberta Cattle Commission is lobbying the
provincial government to fully compensate ranchers for livestock killed by
wolves and coyotes. With conservationists beefing up their efforts to
increase wild animal populations throughout the Foothills since 1993, the
commission was cited as wanting more money for maimed or killed cattle.
This story explained that ranchers currently receive 85 per cent of the
market price if they can prove their stock was killed by a wild animal.
Under the Wildlife Predator Program, ranchers receive, this story says, 50
per cent of the market price if a death is a suspected predator kill.
ACC chairman Jim Turner, was quoted as saying, ``We certainly would like
full value for the animals. Especially when it involves the government
trying to maintain populations, and then expecting us to take the brunt of
the loss.ıı
The governmentıs Wildlife Predator Program is, according to this story,
funded by the Alberta Conservation Associationıs Wildlife Support Program.
Revenue for the program is, this story explained, derived from the sale of
hunting licences. But government conservation officers were cited as saying
that the problem stems from humans infringing on wildlife habitat, not the
animals tracking down livestock.
Cochrane conservation officer Richard Bryant, was quoted as saying,
``Infringement into (the animalıs) area has occurred over the last century,
so thereıs going to be a conflict.ıı
Alberta cattle ranchers were cited as saying that they are frustrated and
want the government to step up and help.
Cattle rancher Trina Lowe, was quoted as saying, ``Itıs a little worrisome.
It kind of makes you mad when something is attacking your living. Sometimes
itıs hard enough to keep (them) alive with disease, much less fighting the
elements.ıı
Bryant was cited as saying that there were about 22 attacks on cattle,
estimated at $900 a head, in the Cochrane area this winter, slightly higher
than normal because of the mild winter.
He was further cited as saying that there are about two packs of wolves in
the area north of Calgary, with 10 to 12 wolves in each group, adding, ``A
lot of (ranchers) accept that there are wolves around. But anyone who owns a
patch of land can rightfully shoot a wolf.ıı
Coyotes in the city limits are, this story explained, also a large problem
for residents who live near provincial parks, like Fish Creek.
Calgary conservation officer Gerry Filipchuk, was quoted as saying,``Theyıre
downtown, theyıre everywhere. These coyotes frequent the city because
thereıs no fear, thereıs no natural enemies and thereıs a good food source
so itıs a good
habitat for them. Once they become habituated to traffic, to people, to
dogs, itıs very easy for them to live here.ıı
City police were cited as saying that they respond to numerous calls every
year of residents who have lost pets to wily coyotes.



CUSTOMS SEIZES ILLEGAL FISH; ONE IN FOUR U.S. ANGLERS VIOLATED GAME LAWS
June 12, 2000
The Windsor Star
A1 / Front
News
Brian Cross and John Goranson Star Staff Reporters
A weekend blitz by Canada Customs and the Ontario Ministry of Natural
Resources has been cited as recovering nearly 700 kg of fish illegally
caught or
transported by American anglers.
Bill Tye, an MNR conservation officer, was cited as saying that Saturdayıs
haul filled three pickup trucks, adding the illicit catch was donated to
area food banks.
Customs and MNR officials were cited as stopping every American vehicle as
they approached toll booths on the Canadian side of the Ambassador Bridge‹a
total of 227 vehicles in nine hours. Particular attention was, this story
says, paid to those with boats in tow.
This story explained that fifty-four Americans were ticketed for violating
provincial regulations and four others received warnings.
Tye, was quoted as saying, ³That was a lot of fish, especially when a lot of
it was fillets,² adding that the high proportion of violations‹about one in
four Americans inspected‹indicates the need for more of these kinds of
checks.
He was quoted as saying, ³We donıt see that violation rate in the field. If
I check 40 fishermen, I might have two in violation.²
Many fishermen are, this story says, tempted to overfish occasionally, Tye
added ³for all the times they got skunked.²
This story explained that most of the violations (34) were for packing and
filleting the fish so officers couldnıt tell how many and what kind of fish
were actually caught. Fishermen are, according to this story, supposed to
cross the border with the scales still on fish so the number and species can
be determined. Eleven violations were, this story explained, for having fish
caught out of season (large- and small-mouth bass arenıt in season until the
last Saturday in June) or over the limit and nine violations were for
unlawfully buying fish.
Officials were cited as saying that the worst offenders at this time of year
are those who take fish that are out of season. After June 24, all varieties
of fish are, this story outlined, fair game, but until then some species are
very vulnerable.
A typical fine for being over the limit is, according to this story, $50,
plus $25 for every fish over. Itıs issued like a speeding ticket. In many
cases, the coolers holding the fish were seized as well.
Tye was further cited as saying that someone transporting fish or game
illegally is subject to having everything seized, adding,  ³Now, if youıre a
couple of bass over, weıre not going to take a $40,000 truck and a $10,000
boat, but if itıs packed full‹itıs quite possible for a fisherman to take
200 to 300 pickerel from some lakes when the limit is six‹then everything
can go.²
There were, this story explained, no such major seizures Saturday. However,
very early on Saturday the officers did catch an impaired driver who was
turned over to Windsor police and a group of four Americans who had lawfully
packed their fish, but had also packed some ³magic mushrooms²‹also known as
psilocybin‹a prohibited substance under Canadaıs narcotics laws.
They were, this story says, dealt with by Canada Customs.

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