2000 News Archive
CATTLE INDUSTRY ASKS OFFICIALS TO ACT ON POTENTIAL TRADE VIOLATIONS
WASHINGTON D.C. (August 22, 2000) -- Mexico's rumored plans to import live cattle from Uruguay and Australia for export to the United States could be a violation of the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) and risk the health of U.S. cattle, the National Cattlemen’s Beef Association (NCBA) said today.
NCBA President George Hall, a cattle producer from Mustang, Okla., sent a letter to all members of Congress and U.S. Department of Agriculture officials outlining these concerns and urging them to conduct a comprehensive risk assessment.
Several unconfirmed but alarming reports have indicated that a large shipment of feeder cattle from Uruguay is planned to arrive in Mexico and ultimately be transported to the United States. In a separate but related incident, reports indicate Mexico has approved an import plan for feeder cattle from Australia.
If these reports are accurate, then the situation could get precarious, Hall said. The potential introduction of foreign diseases could affect the ability of Mexican producers to sell cattle in the United States, ultimately hampering U.S. producers’ eligibility to sell cattle in Canada. Further, the movement of cattle from non-NAFTA countries through Mexico appears to be a violation of this trilateral trade agreement.
“We support the NAFTA but we feel it is a violation of the agreement for Mexico to facilitate the transshipment of live cattle from countries such as Uruguay and Australia to the United States,” Hall said.
The letter encouraged USDA officials to examine whether the Commerce Department is aware of the situation and whether there is a tariff requirement on cattle from Uruguay via Mexico. NCBA also asked USDA to examine whether a subsidy exists on cattle from Uruguay that might make the cattle cheaper or threaten the U.S. beef industry.
“These and many other issues need to be resolved before we allow large numbers of live cattle into the United States from non-NAFTA countries,” Hall said.
Last year, the United States and Mexico agreed to develop identical protocols for imports of live cattle, beef and beef products from Australia. Three specifics of this agreement are: All Australian cattle must be permanently identified or have tamper-proof identification before being exported; all cattle destined for export must be tested for specific diseases; and the cattle must be free of external and internal parasites – specifically those that are foreign to North America.
“The goal here is to maintain the health of the U.S. herd and ensure that Mexico is abiding by provisions of the North American Free Trade Agreement,” Hall said.
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Producer-directed and consumer-focused, the National Cattlemen's Beef Association is the trade association of America’s cattle farmers and ranchers, and the marketing organization for the largest segment of the nation’s food and fiber industry.