May
19 , 2004
Number 51, Volume 2
Farmed
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2. EU GROUP CRITICIZES POOR WELFARE OF ANIMALS DURING TRANSPORT
The
primary food safety body for the European Union has issued the opinion
that “a variety of stress factors involved in transport strongly
contribute to poor welfare in transported animals and increase the risk
of infection and disease.” The far-reaching opinion from the European
Food Safety Authority (EFSA) recommends against transporting female birds
about to lay eggs or mammals nearing the end of their pregnancy. The EFSA
also recommends against loading or unloading animals at staging points
and routinely using behavior-modifying drugs during transport. The opinion
emphasizes training, saying that “very poor welfare in transported
animals is caused by bad treatment of animals during loading or unloading
or by bad driving.”
EFSA
Issues its Opinion on the Welfare of Animals during Transport
EFSA Press Release, May 7, 2004
The Welfare
of Animals During Transport (FULL REPORT)
PDF File (610kb), March 11, 2002
3. CHINA – FARMED ANIMAL WELFARE AND TRADE
The
government of Beijing, China has withdrawn a proposal to legislate animal
protection, including farmed animals. The proposal would have required
that farmed animals be slaughtered “with as little pain as possible,”
and stipulating that they must be sedated prior to slaughter. The proposed
law would have also banned organized animal fighting and required generally
that “all animals be treated in a humane manner.” Nationally,
China has laws that regulate exotic and/or endangered animals, but none
that regulate treatment of farmed animals. As China continues economic
and industrial development, both domestic demand and capacity for export
production is increasing substantially. China’s exports of pigs
and related products grew 14% (quantity, not value) for the first two
months in 2004, compared to only a 2% increase in imports. Demand for
milk and other dairy products is also seeing growth in China due to an
increasingly urban and wealthy populace, although per capita consumption
is still less than 10% of the global average (9.7kg versus 100kg). Foreign
investment in China’s dairy industry is on the rise and is expected
to drastically change the current system in which 90-95% of the country’s
1,500 dairy producers is considered a small or medium-sized enterprise.
Beijing
Rejects Animal Welfare Laws
ABC Radio Australia News, May 17, 2004
Foreign Milk Giants
Fight for Piece of Lucrative China Dairy Market
EFeedlink.com, May 13, 2004 (REGISTRATION REQUIRED)
China's Pork Market Seen to Remain Positive in 2nd Quarter 2004
EFeedlink.com (LINK NOT AVAILABLE)
4. USDA UNDERSTATED RISK OF ARSENIC IN CHICKEN PRODUCTS
The
arsenic-laced drug Roxarsone used to kill parasites and promote the growth
of chickens presents a greater risk for cancer and groundwater contamination
than previously stated by the USDA. This according to a paper published
May 3rd in the journal Environmental Health Perspectives by a John Hopkins
researcher. The paper criticized a January USDA report for not going far
enough despite the admittance that arsenic levels are four times higher
in chicken products than in other types of animal flesh. The new paper
has been substantiated by a former USDA scientist who worked on the original
article and who has stated that the numbers were kept conservative in
part to avoid negative publicity for the chicken products industry.
Arsenic Used in Chicken
Feed May Pose Threat
Baltimore Sun, Dennis O'Brien, May 4, 2004
5. MORE ON ZOONOTIC DISEASES AND CDC EFFORTS
Two
weeks ago we mentioned a meeting of experts to discuss zoonotic diseases,
those diseases that jump from animal species to humans, organized by the
World Health Organization (WHO) (See
item #5). Scientists at the meeting agreed that most infectious diseases
emerging over the past decade are the result of contact with animals,
primarily through deforestation, logging, and urbanization. WHO’s
coordinator of zoonoses control stated, “It’s very likely
that most human diseases today were animal diseases in the past.”
Topping the list of concerns for scientists are avian influenza, SARS,
and to a lesser extent the Nipah virus discovered in Malaysian pigs in
1998. In the US, the Center for Disease Control (CDC) is leading an effort
to merge surveillance systems found in veterinary labs, wildlife health
agencies, and zoos, among other labs, in order to help understand and
prevent the spread of zoonotic diseases.
Experts
Urge Action to Stop Animal Diseases Infecting Humans
BMJ,
Fiona Fleck, May 15, 2004
CDC Watching for Next
Worrisome Outbreak
Associated Press, Daniel Yee,
May 17, 2004
6. ENVIRONMENTAL REGULATIONS HEAVILY INFLUENCED BY INDUSTRY
Policies
at the US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) are directly and heavily
influenced by lobbyists from the animal agriculture industry, according
to documents obtained by the Sierra Club under the Freedom of Information
Act (FOIA). Environmentalists argue that such influence has weakened the
proposed air emissions monitoring program for farms, leading the administration
to implement the meat industry’s proposed “safe harbor”
program. One official said that EPA’s tone had changed significantly
since the beginning of the Bush Administration, and that her office was
directed not to pursue air pollution cases against farms without approval
from political appointees. At least two EPA officials quit in 2002 for
related reasons.
Farmers in Iowa will have help understanding new environmental regulations
from a coalition of state trade groups representing the cow, chicken,
and pig industries, among others. The Coalition to Support Iowa’s
Farmers (CSIF, http://www.supportiowasfarmers.org)
will also assist farmers in dealing with activists, in addition to general
public relations and environmental assistance. According to the coalition’s
Executive Director, Tim Niess: “Some (farmers) feel helpless when
their family is targeted ant threatened by those opposed to their occupation.”
Livestock Industry
Finds Friends in EPA
Chicago Tribune, Andrew Martin, May 16, 2004 (REGISTRATION REQUIRED)
FARM
Coalition to Help Farmers with Environmental Regulations
Rochester
Agri News, May 12, 2004
7. MEAT PROCESSORS AND THE LAW - TYSON FOODS, CARGILL
Fines
against Tyson Foods, the largest meat processing company in the world,
and Cargill, Inc. were blocked recently by conservatives in Canada’s
federal government. The fines were to be issued to both companies for
failure to open financial records for an investigation into $1.6 billion
of government aid relating Canada’s 2003 discovery of Bovine Spongiform
Encephalopathy (BSE). Tyson Foods has a long history of actual and alleged
violations, including overpaying executives, illegally dumping chicken
remains and manure, bribing USDA officials, and smuggling underage, illegal
workers into the country from Mexico (also see
item #2).
Canadian
Tories Kill Call for Stiff Fines on Cargill, Tyson
Meating
Place, Daniel Yovich May 15, 2004
Dorm
Food Supplier has Less-than-tasty History
49er Online, California
State University, Long Beach, May 12, 2004
Commentary:
Congressmen of Both Stripes Protest Family Farm Change
The
Farm Press, Forrest Laws, May 18, 2004
The
Economics of Obesity
Report from USDA workshop, May 2004
Virginia
Pub Serves Humane Fare, Certified
Associated Press, Matthew
Barakat, May 12, 2004
EDITORIAL:
Is USDA Harming Producers?
Southern Livestock Review, Steve
Cady
Survey
Shows Chicken Beats out Beef and Pork Among Low-carb Consumers
Meating Place, Anne Bagel, May 19, 2004
CONTENTS
- Editorial Note
- EU Group Criticizes Poor Welfare of Animals During
Transport
- China - Farmed Animal Welfare and Trade
- USDA Understated Risk of Arsenic in Chicken Products
- More on Zoonotic Diseases and CDC Efforts
- Environmental Regulations Heavily Influenced by Industry
- Meat Processors and the Law - Tyson Foods, Cargill
- Other Items of Interest
RESOURCES
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