050120 Beef Trade Meetings Planned By Nebraska Cattlemen

Norfolk, NB - A series of meetings for cattle producers to share their questions and comments about cattle and beef trade issues are scheduled this month.

The meetings will tackle at least three primary factors raising questions for cattle producers, said Michael Kelsey, Nebraska Cattlemen executive vice president.

On Dec. 29 USDA announced that beginning March 7 live cattle under 30 months of age from Canada will be allowed into the United States for feeding or harvest. Some additional beef will also be allowed. On Jan. 2 a second bovine spongiform encephalopathy (BSE) case was confirmed in Canada. Also, while a framework exists for re-establishing beef trade between the United States and Japan, no timetable has been determined.

"While producers agree production and trade need to be science-based for all countries, questions have been raised about cattle prices here if Canadian cattle and additional beef are imported to the U.S. but U.S. exports to Japan remained closed," Kelsey said.

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