AnimalNet Jan. 29/04
Avian
influenza: EU expert flies to Vietnam
EU suspends
imports of pet birds from South East Asia
EU reduces
the 100% testing requirement for imports of poultry meat from Brazil to 20%
Perspective:
Meat Processing editor Chris Harris looks at the global affect of the avian
influenza epidemic in Southeast Asia
First
official case of avian influenza confirmed in Indonesia
China
accused of 'official cover-up': Bird flu sweeping Asia
Kazakhstan
bans meat, poultry exports from Uzbekistan, Kyrgyzstan due to reported
foot-and-mouth outbreaks
FMD study
planned: British government announces cost benefit analysis of foot and mouth
Disease control strategies
Agriculture
ministers meet: Irish ministers press for cross border cooperation on animal
health and agricultural policy issues
Transport
rules changed: Irish Agriculture Minister affirms commitment to retaining live
exports outlets
U.S. Animal
Identification Plan (USAIP) working group meeting
Beef
enjoyment ad campaign reaches target: Research shows 72 percent of consumers who
have seen ads
Hunters
kill 24 more deer with fatal disease in Illinois
Animal
diseases may trouble state: Exotic pets, agriculture at risk, agencies say
Rapid alert
system for food and feed
High-tech
cowboys
Texas
breeders promote Piedmontese cattle's leaner, more tender beef
how to subscribe
Avian
influenza: EU expert flies to Vietnam
January 29, 2004
The European Commission- Press Release
http://europa.eu.int/rapid/start/cgi/guesten.ksh?p_action.getmex=gc
A European Union animal health expert is today flying to Vietnam to help control
the avian influenza outbreak there. The EU expert is being dispatched in
response to a call by the World Health Organisation (WHO), the UN Food and
Agriculture Organization (FAO) and the World Organisation for Animal Health (OIE)
for international assistance in tackling the spread of the disease in several
Asian countries (see IP/04/64 + http://www.who.int/mediacentre/releases/2004/pr7/en/).
He will work with the Vietnamese authorities as part of a WHO lead team and
provide advice on how to eradicate the disease from the country's poultry farms.
Avian influenza, so-called "bird flu", is highly contagious amongst
chickens and other birds but is usually difficult for humans to catch.
Nonetheless, a total of eight people have died of the disease during the current
outbreak in Asia, six of them in Vietnam. The WHO has warned of the danger of
the virus evolving into a highly contagious strain of human influenza. For the
moment, though, contact with inflected birds is the only way for humans to catch
the virus and so containing the disease in the animal population is the focus of
efforts by government and international organisations. As well as the outbreak
in Vietnam, cases of avian influenza have been confirmed in Cambodia, China,
Laos, Indonesia, Japan, Taiwan, Thailand and South Korea. The EU does not import
poultry or poultry meat from any of the countries hit by the outbreak, other
than Thailand. Imports of poultry products from Thailand into the EU were
suspended after confirmation of the outbreak there (see IP/04/95). Further
information on avian influenza and animal health: http://europa.eu.int/comm/food/animal/diseases/controlmeasures/avian_en.htm
and on avian influenza and humans:
EU
suspends imports of pet birds from South East Asia
January 29, 2004
The European Commission- Press Release
http://europa.eu.int/rapid/start/cgi/guesten.ksh?p_action.getmex=gc
The Standing Committee of the Food Chain and Animal Health, representing the
Member States, has agreed to a proposal from the European Health and Consumer
Protection Commissioner David Byrne to suspend imports of pet birds to provide
maximum assurance following a detailed discussion with the Member States of the
emerging situation in South East Asia. This move is in order to exclude any
possible risk for avian influenza virus occurrence in quarantine stations in the
Member States. Imports have been suspended from Cambodia, Indonesia, Japan,
Laos, Pakistan, People's Republic of China including the territory of Hong Kong,
South Korea, Thailand and Vietnam with immediate effect. The birds concerned
include exotic tropical birds such as parrots, cockatoos, finches, budgerigars,
hawks and falcons.
EU
reduces the 100% testing requirement for imports of poultry meat from Brazil to
20%
January 29, 2004
The European Commission- Press Release
http://europa.eu.int/rapid/start/cgi/guesten.ksh?p_action.getmex=gc
Since October 2002, all consignments of poultry meat and poultry meat products
from Brazil to the EU had to be tested for the presence of residues of
nitrofurane, since this substance had been detected in imported products from
this country (see IP/02/1351). Yesterday, the Standing Committee on the Food
Chain and Animal Health agreed on a European Commission proposal to reduce the
frequency of the checks in the Member States to 20% of the consignments. The
proposal will now be adopted by the Commission and enter into force in the
coming weeks. The testing was reduced because the action plan, put in place by
the Brazilian authorities to address the deficiencies, has been implemented and
enforced efficiently according to a mission report of the Food and Veterinary
Office. Furthermore, the results of the checks carried out by Member States have
shown a major improvement in the situation : no notification of nitrofuran in
poultry meat or poultry meat products has been reported since August 2003.
Perspective:
Meat Processing editor Chris Harris looks at the global affect of the avian
influenza epidemic in Southeast Asia
January 27, 2004
Meat News
http://www.meatnews.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=Article&artNum=6838
The current outbreak of avian influenza in Southeast Asia is a virulent and
dangerous form of the disease that is not only a threat to the poultry
population of the region and all that means to the poultry market, but also to
the human population. The major concern, testing the officials in the World
Health Organization, the United Nations and the Organization for World Animal
Health, the OIE, is how to control the disease and prevent it affecting the
human population. The WHO's Global Influenza Program Team Leader Dr. Klaus Stohr
said officials were worried that the avian flu virus may "re-combine"
with the human flu virus and create a new, more virulent strain.
"There is a possibility that this avian virus merges with the human
influenza virus and the resulting new strain will travel very quickly around the
world," he said, emphasising that currently there is no indication of
human-to-human transmission of this strain. Dr. Stohr and Dr. Jorgen Schlundt,
WHO's Food Safety Program Director said there was no evidence that humans can
get avian flu from eating birds. But they added that people should always use
good hygiene rules when dealing with chickens.
The H5N1 virus strain has swept through the poultry populations of several Asian
countries, including Cambodia, Japan, the Republic of Korea, Thailand,
Indonesia, and Vietnam and most recently Pakistan and Laos. Millions of birds
have died or been slaughtered over the last month. An outbreak of bird flu in
Pakistan this week is not thought to be from the same strain, but in economic
terms is likely to be just as devastating.
Now the three major global organisation have joined forces in a battle to beat
the disease. They have called for the elimination of all birds in infected areas
and the need for compensation for the farmers if their flocks have to be
destroyed.
”We have a brief window of opportunity before us to eliminate that threat,”
Dr. Jacques Diouf, FAO Director-General said. “Farmers in affected areas
urgently need to kill infected and exposed animals and require support to
compensate for such losses. This will represent a huge cost, especially to
struggling economies and small farmers. The international community has a stake
in the success of these efforts and poorer nations will need help,” Dr. Diouf
said.
It is the need for the international community to help that is most urgent, for
the region was a large supplier of poultry meat to the world market, with
Thailand itself a leading player. Already there are reports that chicken exports
from the United States have started to rise, to fill the gap that is being left
by the lack of exports from Thailand -- the fourth largest poultry exporter in
the world. With the EU, one of the major markets for chicken from Thailand,
expecting the Thai product to be off supermarket shelves for up to five months,
there is going to be a scramble to fill the void.
But while there is a scramble to fill the markets, prices will inevitably be
forced up, creating an artificial market. This will mean that when Thailand does
rejoin there could be a cataclysm, with tumbling prices that will hit those
countries, such as the United State and Brazil, who will have been taking up the
current demand.
It is for this reason that both governments and companies need to support the
Southeast Asian region in its present time of need. Any shift in take-up of the
market needs to be viewed with caution and not abject opportunism - for
eventually the trading ability of Southeast Asia will return.
It appears that it will take some time to develop a vaccine against this strain
of avian flu and in the meantime the agricultural systems in these countries
will need support. With many multi-national companies already with a foothold in
Thailand through investments, there is already a springboard for aid and further
investment.
First
official case of avian influenza confirmed in Indonesia
January 29, 2004
OIE Press Release
In a conference hold in Jakarta on 25 January 2004, Dr Sofjan Sudarjat, Director
General of Animal Husbandry of the Ministry of Agriculture of Indonesia informed
that since November 2003, approximately 4.7 million chickens have died and 40
per cent of them were infected with avian influenza and Newcastle disease.
The OIE has requested Dr Sofjan Sudarjat to provide the OIE with more detailed
information on avian diseases situation in his country.
China
accused of 'official cover-up': Bird flu sweeping Asia
January 29, 2004
National Post/Reuters/AP/Globe and Mail/N.Y. Times
LONDON - New Scientist magazine was cited as reporting yesterday that an
"official cover-up and questionable farming practices" allowed Asia's
outbreak of bird flu to turn into an epidemic, sweeping through 10 countries and
killing eight people.
The stories say that the accusation comes as authorities in Beijing confirmed
China's first official cases of the disease and health officials met in Bangkok
to try to stem the spread of the disease.
The magazine was further cited as suggesting that the decision by China's
poultry producers to vaccinate birds after an outbreak in Hong Kong in 1997 may
have been a mistake and could have contributed to the current problem.
The stories explains that Hong Kong conducted a mass slaughter of chickens when
the H5N1 bird flu killed six people, but, Chinese producers used an inactivated
H5N1 virus after the outbreak.
The magazine was quoted as saying, "If the vaccine is not a good match for
the virus -- as is the case with the H5N1 strain now sweeping Asia -- it can
still replicate but most animals do not show signs of the disease."
WHO's Klaus Stohr was cited as saying that tests on samples of the bird flu
virus are still being done but because the strains showing up in Asia are
similar they may have originated from one outbreak, adding, "We are aware
of samples taken early last year that turned out to be this strain
exactly."
Although Mr. Stohr would not say where the early samples came from, New
Scientist said comments from other experts suggested it was China. The magazine
added the pattern of the spread of the virus suggested it had been carried by
people smuggling poultry, which is reportedly widespread in south-east Asia.
Laurence Tiley, a professor of molecular virology at Cambridge University in
England, was cited as saying the current bird flu is similar to the one that was
around in 1997, adding, "The trouble with flu vaccinations is that it
doesn't give what is known as sterile immunity. What can happen is that you can
have the virus circulating in your production birds without obvious
disease."
The vaccinated birds would still be capable of transmitting it on to
non-vaccinated birds.
China's foreign ministry spokeswoman Zhang Qiyue was cited as saying the
accusation made in the British weekly New Scientist "is completely
inaccurate, is without proof and moreover does not respect science."
Asian countries that have so far escaped the bird flu spreading across the
continent stepped up measures Thursday to keep the virus outside their borders.
Hong Kong isolated a woman who returned from Vietnam with suspicious pneumonia
symptoms and Singapore intensified a campaign to cull crows. The scavengers are
considered potential spreaders of the disease, because they could pick up the
flu from dead birds.
Tens of millions of chickens and ducks have died across the region -- from the
disease or in government-ordered slaughters aimed at containing it. The virus
has jumped to humans in Thailand, where two people have died, and Vietnam, which
has had eight fatalities.
Other stories noted that the strongest criticism has been leveled at Thailand,
where officials have been accused of initially covering up the presence of the
influenza to protect the chicken exporting industry. On Wednesday, the Thai
prime minister, Thaksin Shinawatra, conceded that errors were made, and his
spokesman predicted that some officials would be fired.
The spokesman, Jakrapob Penkair, was cited as suggesting that state and
provincial officials had failed to notify government leaders when the presence
of the deadly H5N1 strain of type A flu virus was first detected. Thailand first
publicly acknowledged the presence of the disease last Friday.
Health Canada was cited as reporting that if avian flu becomes pandemic, as many
public-health officials fear, it could kill as many as 58,000 people in Canada
alone.
As part of a detailed pandemic preparedness plan, epidemiologists estimate that
a new strain of influenza, such as one that jumps from birds to humans, could
kill 11,000 to 58,000 Canadians in a matter of weeks.
Those hardest hit would likely be young children and the old, whose immune
systems are least able to fight off infection.
The disease could also put 35,000 to 138,000 people in hospital and leave
between 4.5 million and 10.6 million others too sick to work, which could have a
devastating economic impact.
Arlene King, director of the immunization and respiratory diseases division of
Health Canada, was quoted as saying, "Obviously, our goal is to minimize
death, serious illness and social disruption, which is why we have developed a
pandemic preparedness plan."
In a normal year, influenza kills 4,500 to 9,000 Canadians, and more than
500,000 people worldwide. New flu strains develop each year, but vaccines are
available and many people have at least partial protection because they have
been exposed to flu in the past.
The danger of a pandemic arises only when an entirely new form of influenza
emerges. A strain of avian flu, H5N1, is spreading among birds in Asia. With the
deaths yesterday of two sisters in Vietnam, it has killed 10 people.
Kazakhstan
bans meat, poultry exports from Uzbekistan, Kyrgyzstan due to reported
foot-and-mouth outbreaks
January 29, 2004
AP WorldStream via COMTEX
ALMATY, Kazakhstan -- Kazakhstan was cited as banning meat and poultry exports
from neighboring Uzbekistan and Kyrgyzstan on Thursday due to reported outbreaks
of foot-and-mouth disease in those countries. The Agriculture Ministry was cited
as saying the indefinite ban was imposed on all meat, poultry and live cattle
exports from the two neighboring countries. It said foot-and-mouth outbreaks
there had been reported by the International Epizootic Bureau.
FMD
study planned: British government announces cost benefit analysis of foot and
mouth Disease control strategies
January 27, 2004
Meat News
http://www.meatnews.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=Article&artNum=6844
The British Department of the Environment, Food and Rural Affairs - Defra -is to
carry out a Cost Benefit Analysis on FMD Control Strategies. The year-long
epidemiological and economic study will help to provide enhanced information on
the costs of eradicating FMD taking into account different disease control
policies.
The study will take into account the economic consequences, not just to farmers,
but also on wider rural communities, such as damage to tourism, disruption of
countryside pursuits, and footpath closures. It follows the recommendations of
the Lessons Learned Inquiry into the 2001 FMD outbreak, which suggested that a
CBA update was overdue and that "cost benefit analyses of FMD control
strategies should be updated and maintained" in the United Kingdom. The
survey contract has been awarded to Risk Solution Ltd.
The CBA will be based on a number of scenarios, which will look at four main
control options, including the use of vaccination. It will also take into
account different regional and agricultural regions across Great Britain, stock
densities, mixes of species and outbreaks of different sizes.
Animal Health Minister Ben Bradshaw said: “The CBA will help inform decisions
on which disease control option to use in which circumstances. It will also help
plan resources for an outbreak; refine the Decision Tree; build consensus on
when to use emergency vaccination and more generally improve the evidence on the
costs of different disease control policies.”
Agriculture
ministers meet: Irish ministers press for cross border cooperation on animal
health and agricultural policy issues
January 27, 2004
Meat News
http://www.meatnews.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=Article&artNum=6842
The Minister for Agriculture and Rural Development in Northern Ireland Ian
Pearson, and the Minister for Agriculture and Food, Joe Walsh, met this week to
discuss animal health issues and implementation of the 2003 CAP Reform
Agreement. On animal health both ministers reviewed the paper produced by both
administrations reporting progress towards the development of coordinated Animal
Health Strategies for the island.
The Ministers said the main achievements to date, including the development of
complementary approaches towards preventing the introduction of animal disease,
the convergence of policies on scrapie, and the strengthening of coordination
and cooperation on issues such as contingency planning, bovine spongiform
encephalopathy, and cross-border fraud. They added that work is ongoing on a
wide range of issues including animal identification and traceability, disease
surveillance, animal welfare, the alignment of disease testing programs and
biosecurity.
The ministers also discussed their respective approaches to the implementation
of the CAP reform process and the major challenges that lay ahead for the
industry throughout the island as the reforms are implemented. Pearson said he
expected to announce a decision on the implementation arrangements in Northern
Ireland within a matter of weeks.
Speaking afterwards the ministers said: "We had a very useful discussion on
CAP Reform implementation and animal health, which are two of the most
significant current issues facing the agriculture industry. We have agreed to
establish a joint Working Group to consider cross-compliance issues arising from
implementation of CAP Reform, given the desirability of taking a joint approach
to this within the island. On animal health, we agreed that the ultimate
objective of an all-island Animal Health Strategy should be free movement of
animals on the island subject to EU rules. We have noted the progress made
towards this objective and agree that the next stage should be to seek input
from Stakeholders. Our officials will take this forward with the relevant
interests."
Transport
rules changed: Irish Agriculture Minister affirms commitment to retaining live
exports outlets
January 28, 2004
Meat News
http://www.meatnews.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=Article&artNum=6850
The Irish Minister of State at the Department of Agriculture and Food, Liam
Aylward, has called for changes in the European Commission's proposals for a
regulation on the protection of animals during transport. Minister Aylward
overseas outlets for livestock are critically important to Irish farmers and
exporters, which provide a good economic return and vital competition within the
sector.
"As an exporting nation, it is in our interests that the rules operating at
E.U. level ensure that animals are properly cared for during transport," he
said. "Indeed operators in the sector recognize that it is good business to
ensure that a product reaches the customer in the best possible condition and it
is on this basis that repeat business is often secured."
He added that they will also recognize that it is essential that competitors in
other countries are required to operate on a level playing pitch.”
Minister Aylward said that some aspects of the current proposals, which if
unaltered, would make it difficult for exporters to continue to do business
economically. Of particular concern were the proposals to ban rests at staging
posts, to reduce stocking densities, and to alter travel times. In discussions
to date in the E.U., a wide range of views on the Commission's proposals had
already been expressed and, the minister said that progress will be possible
only through compromise.
Minister Aylward said the focus over the next six months will be on reaching
agreement on a final proposal, which will allow farmers here and throughout
Europe to continue to avail of the Single European Market in a manner which
makes their business economically viable, and which also ensures that legitimate
concerns in relation to the welfare of animals being transported are addressed
in a reasonable manner.
U.S.
Animal Identification Plan (USAIP) working group meeting
January 28, 2004
National Cattlemen’s Beef Association
http://www.beef.org/dsp/dsp_content.cfm?locationId=45&contentTypeId=2&contentId=2467
The Animal Health Committee of the National Milk Producers Federation Jan. 28
hosted a meeting of the U.S. Animal Identification Plan (USAIP) working group in
Phoenix.The Committee met to set priorities and identify key issues of their
evolving plan. The meeting was scheduled to bring the dairy industry together to
form a Dairy Species Subgroup to work on final implementation of USAIP and to
develop recommendations which can be shared with the beef industry as part of
the USAIP Cattle Species Working Group.
Priorities include implementing the program titled “let’s roll”,
education, confidentiality, and making it mandatory. The top three concerns for
the group include: 1) getting the program rolling 2) making it mandatory with no
set starting date, and 3) establishing demonstration and pilot programs.
Another topic was how the program will be funded. “We all agree we need to see
the government put some money into this and it needs to be soon,” said John
Adams, USAIP Dairy Species Leader. “The focus of this program needs to be
industry driven.”
Producers posed questions on how lost tags would be handled; where new tags
would and could be purchased; and who would have access to the information in
the database.
The group’s governance subcommittee suggested a structure for an Oversight
Board comprised of 12 representatives from industry (weighted heavily with
producers); four federal level representatives; four state level representatives
and one coordinator.
The USAIP National Steering Committee has developed some Species Working Group
Guidelines to provide a road map for each species working group.
Adams added that education is a key component of the program. “Everyone needs
to understand the importance of the program. We also need to get state systems
up and going. They will be responsible for premise identification for each
geographical location that has animals associated with it. Then, we can start
worrying about distributing tags and funding.”
The group plans to meet again in early April.
Beef
enjoyment ad campaign reaches target: Research shows 72 percent of consumers who
have seen ads
January 28, 2004
National Cattlemen’s Beef Association
http://www.beef.org/dsp/dsp_content.cfm?locationId=45&contentTypeId=2&contentId=2460
DENVER– A television and print enjoyment campaign, funded by the $1-per-head
beef checkoff and designed to fuel consumer passion for beef, is reaching the
target audience. According to recent research conducted by Hall and Partners of
Chicago, 63 percent of consumers who saw the ads not only liked them, but were
more likely to buy more and spend more on beef after seeing them.
Other findings from Hall and Partners include the following:
72 percent consider beef the best protein when they have seen the ads versus 48
percent for those who have not seen them
87 percent of the target audience is aware of beef advertising
“We’ve always known that consumers are passionate about beef,” according
to Jennifer Houston, chair of the beef industry’s Joint Advertising Committee.
“These ads have an emotional appeal that has resonated with people far more
than we ever imagined.”
The attention-grabbing ads feature such headlines as “No one ever left a
cookout wishing there’d been more macaroni salad,” featuring a beef kabob,
as well as The enjoyment advertising campaign began on January 13, 2003. In
2004, enjoyment print ads will be seen by consumers in January, joined by
television advertisements that kicked off Super Bowl week and running four weeks
through Valentine’s Day.
Both print and television ads will return in March and May, and the enjoyment
campaign will reach 91 percent of adult consumers ages 25-54 a total of 11 times
at less than a penny per exposure. Four enjoyment print ads will run in 18
consumer magazines, including Good Housekeeping, Southern Living, Car and
Driver, Family Circle and Parents.
The second checkoff-funded advertising campaign, in which ads address beef’s
nutritional profile (“only one gram more of saturated fat in lean beef than a
boneless, skinless chicken breast”), was launched last summer. Four print ads
supporting this message will run in January, March and May of 2004 in 22
magazines next to nutrition-oriented editorial. Cooking Light, Fitness, Men’s
Health and Runner’s World are among the publications selected for the
campaign.
In addition, radio commercials supporting enjoyment, nutrition, grilling and the
holidays have been developed and are being used by the majority of state beef
councils on a local basis to build on the national television and print
campaign.
Hunters
kill 24 more deer with fatal disease in Illinois
January 28, 2004
Milwaukee Journal Sentinel
Source: Associated Press
http://www.jsonline.com/news/state/jan04/203311.asp
Springfield, Ill. - The Illinois Department of Natural Resources was cited as
saying Wednesday that tests show that hunters in Illinois killed 24 deer that
tested positive for chronic wasting disease during the recent hunting season,
bringing the two-year total of infected deer to 39.
Spokesman Tim Schweizer was cited as saying most of the infected animals were
found in Boone and Winnebago counties, which border Wisconsin, and all were
found in northern Illinois.
Further testing is being done, but the numbers are not expected to climb because
most of those tests are on animals killed outside the region, Schweizer said.
The story adds that despite the climb in numbers since the disease was first
discovered in Illinois in fall 2002, chronic wasting has not been as widespread
as in neighboring Wisconsin.
Animal
diseases may trouble state: Exotic pets, agriculture at risk, agencies say
January 28, 2004
Milwaukee Journal Sentinel
Lee Bergquist
http://www.jsonline.com/news/state/jan04/203323.asp
Madison - At a rare joint meeting of officials governing the state Departments
of Agriculture, Trade and Consumer Protection and of Natural Resources,
officials were cited as warning of future outbreaks of animal diseases that
could come from anywhere in the world.
Robert Ehlenfeldt, the state veterinarian, was cited as telling board members of
the two agencies that he had never heard of monkeypox before it hit the state
last summer, but he was not surprised that it turned up. Monkeypox had been
found only in Africa until it was discovered in a Wausau girl whose mother
bought an infected prairie dog at a swap meet.
Ehlenfeldt was quoted as saying later in an interview that, "It's
globalization. People are more mobile than ever before. They have less time, but
they still want pets. So they want something that's unique and different."
Ehlenfeldt was further cited as saying that chronic wasting disease in deer was
found in only a few western states until it was discovered in Wisconsin in
February 2002, "because we started to look for it," and that as
specialists look for other diseases, they are sure to find them.
Fish specialists with both agencies also warned of possible outbreaks of
fish-borne diseases as aquaculture grows and exotic fish are dumped into local
waters.
In addition to the exotic, there are concerns about traditional livestock
infections, such as tuberculosis, which can affect humans as well. Wisconsin's
cattle are tuberculosis-free, but farmers grappled with the disease in the
mid-1990s, and Michigan officials are fighting the disease on both the farm and
in the wild deer population.
Tuberculosis has infected herds in other states, including New Mexico, Texas and
California.
Rapid
alert system for food and feed
January 27, 2004
The European Commission- Health and Consumer Protection
The complete document can be viewed at:
http://europa.eu.int/comm/food/food/rapidalert/reports/week04_en.pdf
Weekly overview of alert and information notifications - Week 4
High-tech
cowboys
January 29, 2004
Associated Press
Juliana Barbassa
FRESNO, Calif. -- Cattle rustling has, according to this story, been around ever
since there have been cows and unscrupulous cowboys, but cutting-edge DNA
technology promises to change some of the old patterns.
The story says that DNA testing helped convict John Baker, a Tulare County
rancher accused of altering brands and documents to keep cows that he claimed
had wandered into his property from neighbors' lots.
William Yoshimoto, an attorney with the Tulare County District Attorney's Office
and project director for the Agricultural Crime Technology Information and
Operations Network, was quoted as saying, "Having DNA evidence was
conclusive. We could try to show how the brands had been altered, but you really
can't alter a cow's DNA."
The story explains that investigators took DNA samples from Baker's bull, a cow
belonging to neighboring rancher John Rodgers, and from a calf born to the cow.
Analysis of the samples by a lab in the University of California, Davis gave
conclusive evidence that Baker's bull had sired the calf, and that the cow had
been on Baker's ranch for over a year.
Baker was sentenced in Tulare County Superior Court on Jan. 8th by Judge Joseph
Kalashian on 11 counts of grand theft of cattle, one count of forgery, and one
count of altering a brand. He got 60 months of formal probation, a year in
county jail and an order to pay a restitution of $22,000 to five cattle
ranchers.
Texas
breeders promote Piedmontese cattle's leaner, more tender beef
January 28, 2004
Knight-Ridder Tribune
Elizabeth Allen, San Antonio Express-News
In the beef business, lean and tender do not, according to this story, generally
go together, but the traits crop up together a lot in Piedmontese cattle, and a
handful of Texas ranchers are trying to parlay that into a specialty market.
Kelly Caraway, who raises Piedmontese on his land near Nixon, was quoted as
saying, "I've raised probably every breed known to man,", said.
"This one comes closest to a perfect breed that I've raised."
The story says that Caraway and other Piedmontese fans are talking about meat
that's both lean and tender. The cattle also are "double-muscled,"
which means their muscles are much larger than those of many popular beef
breeds.
They're docile, making them relatively easy to work with, and Texas' Piedmontese
breeders are adding the allure of antibiotic- and hormone-free meat to their
market.
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