The U.S. Meat Export Federation (USMEF) will award its prestigious Michael J....

The U.S. Meat Export Federation (USMEF) will award its prestigious Michael J. Mansfield Award to the World Organization for Animal Health, also known as the Office International des Epizooties, or OIE. The organization was selected for its significant contributions to the advancement of a science-based approach to international meat safety. The award will be presented Nov. 2 at the USMEF Strategic Planning and Marketing Conference in Cancun, Mexico, and be accepted on behalf of OIE by Dr. Bernard Vallat, OIE’s director general. 

Named for the late congressman, senator and ambassador to Japan, the Michael J. Mansfield Award recognizes outstanding leadership in expanding opportunities in international trade. It has been presented by USMEF only eight times in the organization’s 30-year history.

The OIE, based in Paris, was established in 1924 to advocate transparency in addressing animal diseases, provide expertise and encourage international solidarity in animal disease control, and thus provide better assurance that food from animal origin is safe worldwide. In addition, through its mandate under the World Trade Organization for Sanitary and Phytosanitary Standards, OIE works to safeguard world trade by publishing the international health standards for trade in animals and animal products, benefiting all of its 167 member countries.

“We are delighted to present this honor to the OIE, and in particular to Dr. Bernard Vallat for his exemplary leadership since 2001,” said John W. Bellinger, USMEF chairman. “The organization truly has been a model in helping to standardize and increase the understanding of science-based recommendations on animal health worldwide.”

The U.S. Meat Export Federation is the trade association responsible for developing international markets for the U.S. red meat industry and is funded by USDA, exporting companies, and the beef, pork, lamb, corn, sorghum and soybean checkoff programs.

– USMEF –