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Inside U.S. Trade – Friday – December 1, 2006

USDA RESUBMITS RULE TO ALLOW IMPORTS OF ALL CANADIAN BEEF

The U.S. Department of Agriculture late last week resubmitted for interagency review a rule that would open the U.S. market to beef from Canadian cattle older than 30 months, after USDA withdrew the rule on July 27 to await details on recent cases of bovine spongiform encephalopathy (BSE).

USDA on Nov. 24 submitted the rule to the Office of Management and Budget for review, according to a posting on OMB’s website. Sources speculated it could take 30 days or more to review the rule, which could then be published as a proposed rule for an expected 60 days of public comment. OMB could also send the rule back to USDA for changes.

If the rule moves to the public comment period, it could be subject to further changes after that period, or it could be published as an interim or final rule.

U.S. Agriculture Secretary Mike Johanns on Nov. 28 suggested a rule could be published soon. “Depending upon the length of time it takes [OMB] to satisfy themselves that we’ve done what we need to do with this rule, and assuming that we don’t have any setbacks again, I really believe this could come out in the weeks ahead,” Johanns said. “I don’t think we’re talking about months and months.”

Canadian Agriculture Minister Chuck Strahl on Nov. 28 said Canada was “encouraged” by the rule’s submission. Strahl said USDA’s resubmission shows both governments still consider the rule a priority, as previously expressed during a September meeting between Strahl and Johanns.

The rule proposed by USDA concludes that it is safe to allow imports of beef from Canada from animals older than 30 months. The Ranchers-Cattlemen Action Legal Fund United Stockgrowers of America (R-CALF) has called on USDA to reconsider this assumption in light of recent BSE cases in animals born years after Canada began its feed ban to stem the spread of the disease through cattle tissue, and has gone to court in an effort to prevent the U.S. from implementing the rule (Inside U.S. Trade, Aug. 4, p. 10).

In this legal case, USDA’s resubmission came 10 days after the Ninth U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals decided to hear R-CALF’s appeal of a decision allowing the rule to be implemented. The ninth circuit court will determine whether to remand the case to the district court that already ruled in favor of USDA.

Specifically, Peter Shaw, appellate commissioner for the court, on Nov. 14 denied USDA’s motion to dismiss the appeal, saying R-CALF’s arguments in response to the motion to dismiss are “sufficiently substantial to warrant further argument.” Shaw gave R-CALF until Dec. 11 to present its appeal, and USDA has until Jan. 10 to respond. R-CALF will be able to reply in the 14 days following USDA’s brief.

After these briefs are filed, the court will decide whether Judge Richard Cebull in Billings, Montana, acted correctly April 5 when he threw out R-CALF’s case (Inside U.S. Trade, April 21, p. 13).

R-CALF argues Cebull should have formally considered scientific evidence and expert testimony on BSE risks before reaching his conclusion, according to Bill Bullard, CEO of R-CALF. R-CALF wants to have the case remanded back to Cebull’s court, with instructions that he should fully consider the scientific merits of R-CALF’s case, Bullard said.

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