|
National
Grange Hosts a Panel Discussion about the Mad Cow Disease's Affect on Trade
Washington,
May 19, 2004 - The National Grange recently hosted a panel discussion
on the trade implications of Mad Cow Disease on U.S. farmers and ranchers. Participants
in the National Grange's 2004 Legislative Fly-In received insightful information
as industry experts discussed the global issue of bovine spongiform encephalopathy
(BSE), commonly referred to as Mad Cow Disease, and the importance of maintaining
healthy international trade relations. Panel
speakers included Karen Stuck, assistant administrator of the USDA's Food Safety
and Inspection Service, Tadashi Sato, agricultural attaché for the Embassy of
Japan and Arturo Calderon, agricultural attaché for the Embassy of Mexico. The
panelists discussed the importance of food safety and how the U.S.'s recent Mad
Cow Disease scare affected trade with Japan and Mexico. "During
the U.S. incident, Mexico provisionally closed its borders while a risk-analysis
was carried-out," Calderon said. "In the meantime, Mexico and the U.S. worked
to reopen Mexico's borders to U.S. beef. The U.S.'s commitment to the health of
all Mexican consumers, helped restore trade as soon as it was possible." The
impact of Mexico's closed borders on U.S. beef could have been more damaging to
U.S. farmers, but the countries' ability to work together proved beneficial. Although
trade during January 2004 decreased in comparison to January 2003, the countries'
choice to work together will speed up the U.S.-Mexico trade recovery. "At
the end, working together and seeking ways to find solutions was the most important
thing," Calderon said. "Everyone should keep in mind the level of good-will that
both countries have achieved."
Mexico has traditionally been an important market to the U.S.'s agricultural and
food export with a share of 13.7 percent of all U.S. exports for this sector.
The U.S. is Mexico's main supplier of several products, including all meats, as
well as corn, sorghum and grain. During 2003, U.S. beef exports to Mexico reached
$1.1 billion, second behind the amount shipped to Japan - $1.4 billion. On
May 19, 2004, the USDA released a statement announcing the first meeting of the
U.S. - Japan BSE Technical Working Group, "We will openly discuss the areas of
main importance, including the definition of BSE, survey research methods, surveillance,
feed bans and country risk categorization." | 
