Cattlemen's Capitol Concerns Archive
Cattlemen's Capitol Concerns
February 21, 2008
The Cattlemen’s Capitol Concerns (CCC) is a weekly report from Washington, D.C., giving an up-to-date summary of top policy initiatives concerning the cattle industry; direct from the National Cattlemen’s Beef Association (NCBA). Please feel free to reprint in full or in part. If you’d like to include NCBA’s logo, contact us at 202-347-0228.
Export Markets Update: According to newly released statistics, exports for U.S. beef are very strong in all our foreign markets except for South Korea, Japan and China. The United States is now exporting record numbers to 22 countries including Mexico and Canada, which are currently our number one and number two markets, respectively.
NCBA Chief Economist Gregg Doud analyzed the latest year-end trade data from USDA, crunched the numbers, and came up with the following notable statistics for 2007:
- Mexico is the top market for U.S. beef exports. We exported $1.185 billion worth of U.S. beef and beef products to Mexico, a new record.
- Canada is our second largest market. We exported $602 million worth of U.S. beef and beef products to Canada. This also breaks the previous record by a huge margin.
- The United States exported beef/beef products to 104 countries, setting new records for 22 of them. In addition to Mexico and Canada they are the following: Armenia, Belize, Chile, Congo, Costa Rica, Cuba, Dominican Republic, Gabon, Guatemala, Guinea, Honduras, Jamaica, Mauritius, Philippines, Suriname, Taiwan, Ukraine, UAE, Vietnam and Yemen.
- The United States exported a record $69 million in beef and beef products to the Caribbean. The previous record for exports to this area was $59 million in 2006.
- Total U.S. beef, beef variety meat and processed product exports were $2.618 billion. This figure is up from $2.031 billion in 2006, but still down from the $3.86 billion record of 2003.
New Records Set in Four CAFTA-DR Countries: The United States exported $28 million in beef and beef variety meats in 2007 to the CAFTA-DR nations (Costa Rica, Dominican Republic, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras and Nicaragua). This is up from $18 million in 2006.
“Three years ago I forecasted that overall U.S. beef and beef variety meat exports to the CAFTA-DR nations could triple by 2015 to $41 million,” says NCBA Chief Economist Gregg Doud. “In just the first full year of the CAFTA-DR free trade agreement, we've already more than doubled our beef exports. Where this really shows up is in the Dominican Republic where – before the CAFTA-DR - that country's 40 percent tariff limited trade to only between $3-7 million in exports in any given year.”
In 2007, U.S. beef exports to the Dominican Republic were $16 million. New records for U.S. beef exports were set in four of the six CAFTA-DR countries - Costa Rica, Dominican Republic, Guatemala, and Honduras.
Beef Exports to the EU Rise Sharply: Exports to the 27 European Union (EU) countries in 2007 were $49 million. This is up from $29 million in 2006 and the largest figure since 1999. “Even more remarkable is that $40.5 million of this was beef only,” says NCBA Chief Economist Gregg Doud. “Traditionally we have exported primarily beef variety meats to the EU.”
Asian Markets Remain A Frustration for U.S. Cattlemen: NCBA Chief Economist Gregg Doud reports that the only significant markets still completely closed to U.S. beef are South Korea and China, with the ‘20 month and under’ limitation still drastically affecting our trade into Japan.
- Exports to Japan in 2007 were $244 million versus $1.391 billion in 2003, suggesting that we're still at least $1 billion shy of what we're capable of in that market.
- Exports to South Korea were $119 million in 2007 during the brief periods (totaling approximately 109 days) that Korea was open to U.S. boneless beef from cattle less than 30 months of age. South Korea imported $815 million in U.S. beef and beef products in 2003, but the decline in the value of the U.S. dollar alone since that time suggests South Korea is potentially at least a $1 billion market for U.S. beef should completely normalized market access be regained.
NCBA President to Join U.S. Delegation in Korea: Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice will lead a U.S. delegation to the inauguration of President-elect Lee Myung-bak in South Korea scheduled for February 25th. The White House announced last week that Rice will head a delegation that will include new NCBA President Andy Groseta, along with Assistant U.S. Trade Representative Wendy Cutler, William Rhodes, chairman of the U.S.-Korea Business Council, Korean-American football star Hines Ward (2006 Superbowl MVP for the Pittsburgh Steelers), U.S. Forces Korea Commander Burwell Bell and U.S. ambassador to Seoul Alexander Vershbow.
The delegation is expected to make a strong case with Korean officials in support of resolving the U.S.-Korean beef trade issue and passing the U.S.-South Korea Free Trade Agreement.
Russian Trade Update: Russia authorized late last week five more U.S. processors to ship U.S. beef to Russia. Effective February 14th, the plants authorized for export to Russia include: JBS-Swift & Co. plants in Cactus, Texas and Hyrum, Utah; Tyson Fresh Meats plant in Dakota City, Neb.; and the National Beef Packing Co. plants in Dodge City, Kan. and Brawley, Calif. This brings the total to eight U.S. beef processing plants authorized to export U.S. beef to Russia, reflecting the country's increasing demand for foreign beef.
NCBA continues to monitor trade related developments with Russia as it will likely remain the second largest beef importing nation in the world in 2008 at 1.1 million metric tons according to USDA's latest estimates. Russia's imports of red meat rose 8.2 percent in 2007.
USDA Forecasts $101 Billion in Ag Exports for 2008: At USDA’s Annual Agricultural Outlook Forum on February 21st, Secretary Ed Schafer said U.S. agricultural exports could reach a record $101 billion for fiscal year 2008, up $10 billion from November's forecast and an unprecedented $19 billion above 2007. Higher wheat, coarse grain, and soybean prices account for just over half of the revision since November.
Schafer also predicted increases in high-value product exports such as beef. Economic growth in foreign countries has prompted gains in consumer incomes and in overseas consumer demand for high quality beef products. The weaker dollar makes U.S. products very price competitive when compared to suppliers in other countries.
"Trade agreements have a significant impact on our ability to compete and sell our agricultural commodities in world markets," said Schafer. "If Congress ratifies the pending free trade agreements with Colombia, Panama, and Korea, the increased access will boost our producers' exports even higher."
The summary and full report of USDA's "Outlook for U.S. Agricultural Trade" may be accessed from the FAS website at www.fas.usda.gov or the ERS Web site at www.ers.usda.gov.
USMEF Predicts Strong Recovery in Asian Markets: The forecast for U.S. beef exports from the U.S. Meat Export Federation (USMEF) is 20 percent higher than USDA estimates for 2008, and 35 to 55 percent higher over the 10-year outlook period, based on the anticipated impact of the changes in the status of the South Korean and Japanese beef markets during the first half of 2008. USMEF says it anticipates a quick recovery of market share in Asia — once those markets fully reopen — due to strong beef demand and high beef prices in South Korea and Japan.
USMEF points out that although USDA’s export projections are not published by market, it appears that USDA assumes a more gradual rebuilding of U.S. beef exports to these two key markets, which were the number one and number three beef export markets for the United States prior to December 2003. For comparison, USMEF anticipates a recovery of 2003 export volume by 2010 while USDA does not anticipate exports will approach the 2003 level until 2017. For more information on these projections, visit www.usmef.org.
NCBA Supports Recall and Ongoing Investigation: USDA announced February 17, 2008 that Hallmark/Westland Meat Packing Co. of Chino, Calif. is voluntarily recalling approximately 143 million pounds of meat products dating back to February 1, 2006, because in some situations, cattle did not receive complete and proper inspection, therefore violating FSIS regulations. Unlike a Class I recall, this recall is designated as Class II due to a very remote probability that the beef being recalled could cause adverse health effects.
USDA has obtained evidence that the plant did not consistently contact the FSIS public health veterinarian in situations in which cattle became non-ambulatory after passing ante-mortem inspection, which is not compliant with FSIS regulations. So far the investigation has found that this practice was not frequent, but USDA has evidence that it did happen on February 1, 2006.
In a statement issued this week, NCBA supported the recall because of the regulatory violations related to federal inspection regulations and emphasized the importance of USDA’s multiple hurdle approach to ensuring food safety. Additionally NCBA supports full enforcement of the Humane Slaughter Act, regarding animal handling, which employees of the plant violated.
“As an organization representing beef producers, we have two expectations when our cattle leave our farms and ranches: that our animals are treated humanely and that every step is taken to produce safe beef,” said James O. Reagan, Ph.D., NCBA’s Vice President, Research and Knowledge Management. “We support USDA’s actions today to enforce the laws that ensure our cattle are handled with care and that our beef is produced safely.”
NCBA Member Named to First-Ever EPA Agricultural Advisory Committee: NCBA member and Dalhart, Texas cattle producer Tom McDonald has been named to a new advisory committee assembled by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) aimed at fostering relations between the agency and the agriculture community.
NCBA Chief Environmental Counsel Tamara McCann Thies says Tom will be a great asset to the committee. “Tom brings a wealth of knowledge and perspective on environmental issues that will be important for the committee to consider,” says Thies. “I have worked with Tom as Chairman of NCBA's Environmental Working Group and know that he will represent the cattle industry well."
EPA announced on February 20th the appointment of McDonald, along with 29 additional individuals, to serve on the Farm, Ranch, and Rural Communities Advisory Committee. The group includes large and small farmers, ranchers, and rural community leaders, rural suppliers, marketers and processors, academics and researchers who study environmental issues impacting agriculture, and leaders from environmental and conservation groups.
Armed with the responsibility of advising the administrator on environmental policy issues impacting farms, ranches, and rural communities, the committee will operate under the rules of the Federal Advisory Committee Act.
"We are very pleased that the EPA has decided to set up this agriculture advisory committee that is comprised largely of producers who can inform the EPA about what works and what doesn't when it comes to environmental regulation,” says Thies. “One thing that has always been lacking in the EPA is a clear understanding of agricultural operations. This committee will help to educate staff and foster reasoned solutions to environmental issues."
The first meeting of the committee is scheduled to take place March 13 and 14, 2008 in Washington, D.C. EPA says it will ask the committee to focus initially on issues related to renewable energy and climate change, livestock waste management and balancing sustainable agriculture with environmental protection. For a full list of the committee members and for more information, visit EPA’s website at: www.epa.gov.
Congressional Schedule: Both Houses of Congress are out this week for the President’s Day recess. Congress is scheduled to reconvene on Monday, February 25.
Don't Miss NCBA’s Award-Winning Cattlemen to Cattlemen: On this week’s episode, airing February 19-24, we bring you the action straight from the Trade Show floor of the 2008 Cattle Industry Annual Convention! Highlights include interviews with sponsors Purina Mills, Fort Dodge Animal Health, Dow AgroSciences and Bayer Animal Health. We also visit with Caterpillar, John Deere, GrowSafe Systems, Molly Manufacturing and Wild Blue. Plus, we meet World Champion Dog Trainer Elvin Kopp. And we spend a day in the life of new NCBA President Andy Groseta at his ranch in Arizona!
On next week’s episode airing February 26 through March 2, NCBA’s Cattlemen to Cattlemen will bring you highlights from USDA Secretary Ed Schafer’s address to cattlemen at the 2008 Cattle Industry Annual Convention and Trade Show. Plus, we have specific tips for cattlemen about how to properly plan their estates. We continue our series on artificial insemination with a demonstration on how to properly handle bull semen. Plus, we highlight the winner of this year’s Environmental Stewardship Awards Program, the Yolo Land and Cattle Co. from California.
NCBA’s Cattlemen to Cattlemen on RFD-TV provides weekly news and features for cattle producers across the country. The show airs Tuesdays at 8:30 p.m. and is rebroadcast Wednesdays at 10:30 a.m. and Sundays at 12 a.m. (midnight). All times are Eastern. Make sure YOU tune into NCBA’s Cattlemen to Cattlemen on channel RFD-TV. For more information or to check out past episodes, visit www.cattlementocattlemen.org.
Media Contact: Karen Batra at kbatra@beef.org or call 202-347-0228.
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