Asia Pacific | BSE seen giving Japan prices another deceptive liftTOKYO, Jan...

Asia Pacific

BSE seen giving Japan prices another deceptive lift
TOKYO, Jan 9 (Reuters) - A spike in meat prices after a ban on U.S. beef imports is likely to push up Japan's consumer price index in the months ahead, the latest in a string of factors complicating the outlook for deflation and monetary policy.

UPDATE 3-Japan sees step-by-step end to ban on US beef
WASHINGTON, Jan 8 (Reuters) - Japan said Thursday it wants to cooperate with the Bush administration to end Tokyo's ban on imports of American beef as the U.S. meat industry pushed a plan to certify its shipments are free of mad cow disease.

Korean Farmers Force Vote Delay on Free-Trade Pact
South Korea's parliament deferred Thursday a key vote on a free-trade pact with Chile, backing down in the face of fierce opposition from farm groups who mustered 3,000 farmers in a violent protest outside the National Assembly(WN)

Americas

BSE Ripples into Canada
Canadians fear a link to the firstU.S. case of BSE will delay reopening export markets to Canadian beef.

Europe

Germany doubles number of cattle untested for BSE
HAMBURG, Germany, Jan 9 (Reuters) - The German government estimated on Friday that up to 1,000 cattle untested for the mad cow disease BSE were sold for meat in 2003, almost double the number originally thought.

USA

CME cattle sharply higher-limit up on beef sales
CHICAGO, Jan 9 (Reuters) - Chicago Mercantile Exchange live cattle futures were sharply higher to limit-up early on Friday in reaction to active beef sales this week, livestock analysts said.

After mad cow, U.S. farmers warily back animal ID
WASHINGTON, Jan 9 (Reuters) - America's traditionally independent farmers will drop their distrust of outside meddling to embrace a national livestock identification system as a safeguard against mad cow disease, leaders of the largest U.S. farm group say.

USDA traces another animal from mad cow herd
WASHINGTON, Jan 8 (Reuters) The U.S. Agriculture Department said on Thursday it located another cow that was shipped from Canada as part of a dairy herd that included the animal infected with the first U.S. case of mad cow disease.

UPDATE 1-US feed group proposes tougher mad cow safeguards
WASHINGTON, Jan 8 (Reuters) - The U.S. feed industry on Thursday proposed tougher federal rules to prevent another case of mad cow disease in the United States, including opening feed plants to annual third-party inspections.

Beef Board Approves Additional Funds to Manage BSE Response
The Executive Committee of the Cattlemen's Beef Board (CBB) approved activation of a $1 million issues-management crisis fund from the national Beef Checkoff Program to pay for programming related to the first case of BSE in theU.S.

NCBA: Maximizing Food Safety Doesn't Happen with COOL
News that a single BSE-infected cow diagnosed in Washingtonstate was imported from Canada will renew the urgency of debate on country of origin labeling. Proponents of the law would have you believe that labeling will add an additional layer of safety to our food supply.

Senators ask Veneman to appoint special trade envoy
A bipartisan group of U.S. senators urged the Agriculture Department to appoint a special envoy to work to reopen world markets to U.S. beef.

Farmer's Almanac says buffalo 'new red meat'
The 2004 edition of the Old Farmer's Almanac is predicting American buffalo will be the "in" red meat for 2004, providing a new healthy alternative to beef and pork.

USDA issues new regulations to address BSE
USDA's Food Safety and Inspection Service issued four new rules to implement announcements made last week by Agriculture Secretary Ann Veneman to further enhance safeguards against bovine spongiform encephalopathy (see  USDA announces new BSE prevention measures, Daily News, Dec. 31, 2003).

Interest heats up for labels on meat
The discovery of mad cow disease in a Canadian-born cow has rekindled interest in a law requiring meat to be labeled with its country of origin.

Asia Pacific

BSE seen giving Japan prices another deceptive lift
TOKYO, Jan 9 (Reuters) - A spike in meat prices after a ban on U.S. beef imports is likely to push up Japan's consumer price index in the months ahead, the latest in a string of factors complicating the outlook for deflation and monetary policy.

UPDATE 3-Japan sees step-by-step end to ban on US beef
WASHINGTON, Jan 8 (Reuters) - Japan said Thursday it wants to cooperate with the Bush administration to end Tokyo's ban on imports of American beef as the U.S. meat industry pushed a plan to certify its shipments are free of mad cow disease.

Korean Farmers Force Vote Delay on Free-Trade Pact
South Korea's parliament deferred Thursday a key vote on a free-trade pact with Chile, backing down in the face of fierce opposition from farm groups who mustered 3,000 farmers in a violent protest outside the National Assembly(WN)

Americas

BSE Ripples into Canada
Canadians fear a link to the firstU.S. case of BSE will delay reopening export markets to Canadian beef.

Europe

Germany doubles number of cattle untested for BSE
HAMBURG, Germany, Jan 9 (Reuters) - The German government estimated on Friday that up to 1,000 cattle untested for the mad cow disease BSE were sold for meat in 2003, almost double the number originally thought.

USA

CME cattle sharply higher-limit up on beef sales
CHICAGO, Jan 9 (Reuters) - Chicago Mercantile Exchange live cattle futures were sharply higher to limit-up early on Friday in reaction to active beef sales this week, livestock analysts said.

After mad cow, U.S. farmers warily back animal ID
WASHINGTON, Jan 9 (Reuters) - America's traditionally independent farmers will drop their distrust of outside meddling to embrace a national livestock identification system as a safeguard against mad cow disease, leaders of the largest U.S. farm group say.

USDA traces another animal from mad cow herd
WASHINGTON, Jan 8 (Reuters) The U.S. Agriculture Department said on Thursday it located another cow that was shipped from Canada as part of a dairy herd that included the animal infected with the first U.S. case of mad cow disease.

UPDATE 1-US feed group proposes tougher mad cow safeguards
WASHINGTON, Jan 8 (Reuters) - The U.S. feed industry on Thursday proposed tougher federal rules to prevent another case of mad cow disease in the United States, including opening feed plants to annual third-party inspections.

Beef Board Approves Additional Funds to Manage BSE Response
The Executive Committee of the Cattlemen's Beef Board (CBB) approved activation of a $1 million issues-management crisis fund from the national Beef Checkoff Program to pay for programming related to the first case of BSE in theU.S.

NCBA: Maximizing Food Safety Doesn't Happen with COOL
News that a single BSE-infected cow diagnosed in Washingtonstate was imported from Canada will renew the urgency of debate on country of origin labeling. Proponents of the law would have you believe that labeling will add an additional layer of safety to our food supply.

Senators ask Veneman to appoint special trade envoy
A bipartisan group of U.S. senators urged the Agriculture Department to appoint a special envoy to work to reopen world markets to U.S. beef.

Farmer's Almanac says buffalo 'new red meat'
The 2004 edition of the Old Farmer's Almanac is predicting American buffalo will be the "in" red meat for 2004, providing a new healthy alternative to beef and pork.

USDA issues new regulations to address BSE
USDA's Food Safety and Inspection Service issued four new rules to implement announcements made last week by Agriculture Secretary Ann Veneman to further enhance safeguards against bovine spongiform encephalopathy (see  USDA announces new BSE prevention measures, Daily News, Dec. 31, 2003).

Interest heats up for labels on meat
The discovery of mad cow disease in a Canadian-born cow has rekindled interest in a law requiring meat to be labeled with its country of origin.