Mad Cow Case May Lengthen Beef Ban

I have a question for peopl out there:

is it just me, or is our government (Klein, Martin) conspiring to ruin our own producers?

Is it just me, or are these "announcements" simply staged to manipulate the stock market and protect U.S. trade interests?

There have been three announcemetns, of cases found recently, and not so recently. Who decides when they are announced?

Is NAFTA the reason our government hasn't banned ruminant feed 100%? (banning the feed in poultry, hogs that are fed back to cattle and to humans.) Denmark, Britain both had cases until their full ban, and it seems the causes are still debated.


On a gloomy note as well, here where I am in Toronto, our beef comes from Chicago and New York, as our producers out west can't sell their beed.

I have also heard that the U.S. has so few meat inspectors the partial-ban in the U.S. is not being respected and enforced.


I don't trust Canadian or American beef at all anymore.

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The best argument against democracy is a five minute conversation with the average voter --

Winston Churchill

It's almost criminal that we would lower our standards to this level, and give away our independence in NAFTA. Hopefully the NDP, Bloc, even the Conservatives can push this, though if we accept the untested American beef, who knows what we're getting anyway.

Of course our health doesn't matter, so we'll accept American beef.


12/01/2005
Feds Ignored The Risks Of BSE Partial Ban — Angus
Timmins – Charlie Angus, Federal NDP agriculture critic, says the federal government’s refusal to move to a full ban against using rendered cows in animal feed has exposed Canadian farmers and consumers to an ongoing BSE crisis.


Angus accuses the CFIA (Canadian Food Inspection Agency) of continually low-balling the risks associated with using downer cattle as animal protein. He says the CFIA must have been aware of that the simple ruminant to ruminant feed ban failed in other jurisdictions and so was likely to fail here as well.


“The Feds have continually dragged their feet on this issue. They’ve been relying on a policy of hope and luck instead of established scientific protocol,” said Angus. “If there’s one thing we have learned with BSE is that it’s not good enough to cross our fingers and hope for the best. The CFIA could have seen from the experience in England and Denmark that a partial ruminant ban was insufficient to protect the public’s interest.”


In England, nearly 44,000 BSE infected animals were born after the ruminant to ruminant feed ban was put in place in 1986. Like Canada, the British continued to allow downer cattle to be rendered for pigs and chickens. It wasn’t until Britain brought in a full ruminant ban in 1996 that they were able to eradicate the disease.


A similar situation existed in Denmark which continually suffered from BSE cases after the ruminant to ruminant ban was put in place in 1990. In January 2001, the EU forced Denmark to impose a total ban.


Angus says it’s no surprise that the latest BSE contaminated animal was born after Canada introduced the 1997 partial ban.


“Canada’s record on BSE is woeful. The British moved to a partial ban in 1986 – we waited a full nine years before even taking this step,” said Angus. “The British instituted a full ban in 1996 and eight years later we’re still playing for time and ignoring the facts.”


Angus points out that the incubation period for infecting humans with variant CJD can be as much as 10 or 20 years.




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The best argument against democracy is a five minute conversation with the average voter --

Winston Churchill

<i>is it just me, or is our government (Klein, Martin) conspiring to ruin our own producers?</i><p> No. They are trying to gain back more International markets.<p> <i>Is it just me, or are these "announcements" simply staged to manipulate the stock market and protect U.S. trade interests?</i><p> No, they are announced when they are found. It's the only way to show everyone that we aren't sweeping anything under the rug. (More later).<p> <i>There have been three announcemetns, of cases found recently, and not so recently. Who decides when they are announced?</i><p> As soon as the Food Inspection agency confirms it.<P> <i>Is NAFTA the reason our government hasn't banned ruminant feed 100%? </i><p> No, it the science behind the 'prion'. Only ruminants can get it from infected feed. As you say, we don't know enough about prions yet to be sure.<p> <i>I have also heard that the U.S. has so few meat inspectors the partial-ban in the U.S. is not being respected and enforced.</i><p> The US has a cattle population of over 100 million head. Canada's population is around 10 million. The ocurrence of *naturally* ocurring BSE is 1 in 4 million head, over 6 years old. So the US statistically should have 20 cases of naturally ocurring BSE. Are they practicing the 'shoot, shovel and shut up' philosophy?<p> <i>I don't trust Canadian or American beef at all anymore.</i><p> I'll take Canadian beef, rare.<p>---<br>"If you must kill a man, it costs you nothing to be polite about it." Winston Churchill<br />

I'll take certified organic beef. Same great taste, lower fat/cholesterol and zero risk of BSE. Face it people, bovine are herbivores, not carnivores. They are not supposed to eat chicken, pork, other cows or even grains for that matter. Feeding grains increases the populations of e. coli bacteria in the gut. Naturally, they are a grazing herbivore which means if you like beef, buy organically (certified) grass fed beef. Omit grainfed from your diet and have it as rare as you like.

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Canada for Canadians

DOn't get me wrong, I've had beef from time to time, I just think that our government is phoney.

Foreign markets like Europe, Japan won't take our beef until it is tested, 100% of the time, whether it needs to be ornot, and after ruminant feed is banned in all animals.

I truly believe there is manipulation going on, Doc. Another announcement right after our "borders are to be opened."

If it is so cheap to test, and costs nothing to ban ruminant feed, whether it's overkill or not, can we honestly believe our governments care when they could've tested everything and banned ruminant feed as soon as the first case happened?

I'd take our beef rare, most of the time, but I DO believe the U.S. is shooting and shovelling, and that's where Toronto's beef comes from, at least some of it.

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The best argument against democracy is a five minute conversation with the average voter --

Winston Churchill

i would think that the farmes should be responceble for there products along with the governments they have had a year to do it, as for the cost it should be tax deductable as expences for proudction, on top of all the tax payers money that has been given to them for this.

All I mean is why not err on the side of caution. It would cost nothing to test everything, compared to those corporate aid packagtes that went to Cargill & Co.

I should mention that news about a possible beef co-op was great to hear...I like the concept behind a co-op.

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The best argument against democracy is a five minute conversation with the average voter --

Winston Churchill

I'm not too picky about the 'certified' part, but organic is better. E-coli only is a real problem if the animal is slaughtered poorly.

There used to be an all-natural farm I got beef from all the time, but can't remember the name now . . .


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"If you must kill a man, it costs you nothing to be polite about it." Winston Churchill

Testing does cost money, because the government has to hire more vets to do it. That was the big hubub about the first case - why it took so long.

But testing should be 100%. And the co-op would be great. It'll put a lot of American workers on unemployment too. The US can be as protectionist as it wants, we'll just adapt.

I wouldn't eat any US beef, or milk products. JBH. Uhhg.


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"If you must kill a man, it costs you nothing to be polite about it." Winston Churchill

Why is it protectionist not to want beef that will turn your brain to swiss cheese in a decade or two when consumed. Everything is not the US's fault, as convenient as that next door scapegoat always is.

What makes you think you don't already? What tells you that our beef will? Is not the fact that these cows never made it into the food system, where the cow in Washington State did, not cause you concern? As stated above, there should be at least 20 cows in the US population that are infected. If you don't eat the eyes, liver, brain or spinal cord, your chances of injesting the prion that causes vJCD are basically zero, and all these are removed from the food cahin on the Canadian side of the slaughterhouse. So are your concerns valid?

It's not just beef. It's lumber, live hogs, steel and grain too. Protectionism.

I knew that sentence would attract you Jerry Jay.


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"If you must kill a man, it costs you nothing to be polite about it." Winston Churchill

Yeah, testing is cheaper than bailouts.....reagrding American beef and milk, I believe that here in Toronto we DO get Canadian beef, as there are a lot of beef farms in rural Ontario and Quebec, but the beef in the fast-food chains like McDonals's, Burger King is mostly or completely U.S. beef.

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The best argument against democracy is a five minute conversation with the average voter --

Winston Churchill

Perturbed. Thanks for putting the BSE story out again. Keep at it. I, for one, am not convinced it's the farmers at fault here. They have been professionally scapegoated by the slippery eels working the PR machines for the likes of Monsanto and Agrium, etc. I was sold a long time ago that the fertilers and feed are the culprits. Other environmental factors come into play too. Remember the cancellation of the Concorde? Seems there was a connection between the constant breaking of the sound barrier and the subsequent negative effects on European livestock.

What science behind the prion is the question! The
infectious prion is supported by myth and ideology, and
little else. 40,000 cows in the UK with no evidence of
exposure to contaminated feed -- so they say maybe it
is transmitted to offspring. They have not proven it
despite acting on it as scientific truth.

Why are consumers, media and producers asssuming
the infectious malformed prion protein is a correct
hypothesis when it is not proven and there are
competing hypotheses which make sense! Stop buying
the BS and start demanding that science replace myth
and hysteria. For one hypothesis see markpurdey.com
or read David Crowe.