Asia Pacific | Australia Prepared For Animal Diseases | Australian Agricultur...

Published: Aug 29, 2003

Asia Pacific

Australian Agriculture Minister Warren Truss has welcomed a report from the Australian National Audit Office (ANAO) confirming that Australia is well prepared to combat incursions of deadly animal diseases such as foot and mouth (FMD) and BSE.

Americas

Brazilian beef sales surge
Beef producers are being warned Brazil could be a threat to Australia's exports, with sales from the South American producer surging by 17 per cent last year.

Europe

EU Commission LIfts Some Restrictions Regarding Avian Influenza In The Netherlands

The Standing Committee on the Food Chain and Animal Health has voted in favour of a European Commission proposal to lift some of the restrictions put in place after outbreaks of avian influenza in the Netherlands.

Switzerland: Sales of Organic Products Rose 13% in 2002.

Sales of organic products in Switzerland were up 13% year-on-year in 2002 at 1.06bn Swiss francs (US$765.7m), according to Swiss organic producers’ organisation Bio Suisse.

USA

Drought Relief Measure Passes in House
(NCBA) Ranchers forced to reduce herd size due to historically-severe drought conditions will be protected from paying taxes if the Ranchers Help Act is passed in the Senate.

War Jitters Boost Canned Meat Sales

While the war in Iraq has been blamed for a slide in consumer confidence, one commodity that seems to have benefited from war jitters is canned meat. A survey released Tuesday by Bank of Tokyo-Mitsubishi and UBS Warburg noted retail sales for the previous week were mostly flat. But war fears did spark some buying of survival goods

Beef Industry Making Strides In Fight Against E. Coli

Science and technology are paving the way for a safer beef supply according to a panel discussion at the recent Food Safety Summit and Expo in Washington in the USA.

Nebraska COOL meeting to be held May 8
(3/25, The Independent) Grand Island and Kearney are the primary sites being considered to host a planned listening and educational meeting on the new country-of-origin labeling (COOL) law by the U.S. Department of Agriculture, according to Greg Ruehle, executive vice president of the Nebraska Cattlemen