The following article is from the NAFB News Service:
Brazil has a long history of foot and mouth disease outbreaks among livestock, but BSE was confirmed in the region of Brazil last week from where USDA has proposed to allow imports of animal products.
In response, the National Farmers Union and U.S. Cattlemen’s Association has sent a letter to Ag Secretary Tom Vilsack asking USDA to withdraw its proposal to relax restriction on imports of animal products from Brazil. NFU and USCA say the health and integrity of animal agriculture is extraordinarily important to rural American and the entire U.S. economy. Any threats to the industry deserve thorough investigation, they say, and the events in Brazil warrant close scrutiny by USDA before further advancing.
Both NFU and USCA believe family farmers and ranchers would suffer tremendously if an animal disease outbreak were to occur in the U.S., so these groups look forward to working with USDA to ensure the U.S. livestock industry remains strong and urge USDA to reconsider the proposed rule on Brazilian animal product imports.
Source: NAFB News Service
Posted by Haylie Shipp
