Posted: August 4, 2008 at 5:27 pm
By News Editor
Last week, the National Milk Producers Federation (NMPF) responded to the public release of a previously internal report by sending a letter to U.S. Agriculture Secretary Ed Schafer.
In a letter sent today to Agriculture Secretary Ed Schafer, NMPF President and CEO Jerry Kozak noted that the USDA’s Office of Inspector General, in a report finished last March but now publicly available, “suggests USDA has problems tracking and ensuring the health of cattle imported from Canada.”
“NMPF believes that the BSE (bovine spongiform encephalopathy, or mad cow disease) situation in Canada is such that an animal could be imported into the U.S. and, if allowed to reside amongst the U.S. dairy herd, introduce or disseminate BSE in the U.S. This is evident by the number of cases of BSE from animals born after the USDA determined date of effective enforcement of their feed ban,” the letter states.
The letter then asks the USDA to consider closing the border to animals to be used for breeding purposes, which would include dairy heifers. USDA reports that approximately 45,000 Canadian dairy animals have been sent to the U.S. since the border was reopened in November 2007.
“We request that USDA close the Canadian border to the importation of cattle for breeding or herd replacement purposes until such time that USDA can sufficiently ensure the health of imported cattle and your ability to track these cattle.”
“The enforcement of the 1997 Canadian feed ban does not appear to be effective in preventing the spread of BSE in Canada,” NMPF wrote, in light of the periodic reoccurrence of infected cattle, many of which could have been exported to the U.S. The first case of BSE discovered in the U.S., in 2003, was in a Canada-born dairy animal.
“Cattle imported for breeding or herd replacement purposes may not show clinical symptoms of BSE infection for many years, allowing BSE to incubate in U.S. cattle herds. In addition, any offspring from these cattle will also reside in the U.S. cattle population. If any of these animals are confirmed positive for BSE, both domestic and export markets for U.S. producers will be disrupted,” NMPF said.
Posted: July 26, 2008 at 2:51 pm
By News Editor
Scotland’s biggest cheese maker, the Caledonian Cheese Company, has announced that they will begin selling their leading product, “Seriously” in the U.S. There are four varieties of the Seriously cheese, vintage, strong, mild red and mild white. They are marketed by Lactalis McLelland.
The launch, expected in the coming week, follows interest drummed up at a major food exhibition in the US. All the cheeses will be packaged so that customers will be in doubt that they come from Scotland.
Andy Smith, Lactalis McLelland’s managing director, said: “This brand is now sold in 42 countries around the world and this international expansion is set to grow in the future.
“Part of this success is down to the consistently high standard of quality produce we receive from farmers. We will continue to seek additional opportunities as well as strengthening our relationships and fostering new partnerships with farmers.”
Posted: February 25, 2008 at 6:11 pm
By News Editor
Four Canadian dairy producers will no longer be shipping their milk into the U.S., something that they had been doing illegally, potentially disrupting trade balances.
“The milk that’s come over the border is a drop in the bucket,” said Jessica Chittenden, a spokeswoman for the state Department of Agriculture and Markets. “But it’s the principle. Here are farmers producing milk outside of the U.S. They haven’t been following the rules.”
At issue is an international trade regulation govern quotas for dairy imports between the two countries.
In May 2003, the World Trade Organization ruled that Canadian dairy farmers should participate in a quota system. U.S. officials hoped that agreement would level the playing field for American producers.
Currently, New York and Canadian officials know of only four Canadian dairy producers that are sending the milk across the border. New York is the third largest dairy producing state, behind California and Wisconsin.
But this month a Canadian court issued a restraining order against the Ontario-based dairy farmers that would restrict them from exporting the milk to the United States.
Accepting Canadian milk isn’t illegal, state officials said, but could potentially upset trade balances. And while the farmers that sent their milk stateside aren’t hurting dairy sales in New York at this point, the state wants the practice to end.
State Department of Agriculture Commissioner Patrick Hooker had complained to U.S. Trade Representative Susan Schwab late last year that the issue hadn’t been resolved after the 2003 World Trade Organization ruling.
Posted: November 19, 2007 at 6:53 pm
By News Editor
Alto Dairy announces their online store that features Black Creek® Classic Cheddar cheeses. The new site includes new packaging and product photos, stories highlighting Alto member family farms, Alto employees and recipes using aged cheddar as an ingredient.
“We are excited that consumers can now purchase our great tasting Black Creek Cheddar cheese nationwide with the click of a mouse,” says Karen Endres, Director of Marketing and Communications at Alto Dairy. “We hope that cheese lovers across the country will take advantage of the opportunity to purchase our quality award-winning cheese.”
With over 90 years of cheesemaking experience between them, the Certified Wisconsin Master Cheesemakers of Black Creek are at the heart of our award-winning taste. Our cheesemakers, Gregg Palubicki, Kurt Heitmann, and Ken DeMaa, have met the rigorous standards for cheesemaking experience and expertise needed to gain Master Cheesemaking status. Under their watchful eyes, only the finest naturally aged cheeses are hand selected to carry the Black Creek label.
Posted: September 17, 2007 at 4:57 pm
By News Editor
The USDA announced the lifting of its ban on Canadian cattle that are 30 months of age or older, starting Nov. 19.
The U.S. has banned the older, or “cull cattle,” since Canada reported its first case of bovine spongiform encephalopathy, or mad-cow disease, in May 2003. The U.S. eased restrictions on cattle under 30 months old, which are the bulk of Canadian exports, in July 2005 because those younger cattle are believed to be far less likely to be infected with BSE.
But the USDA now believes that even if infected cattle come across the border from Canada, the protections in place here are sufficient to keep the disease from spreading in herds as well as out of the human food supply. The final rule unveiled Friday also lifts the U.S. ban on Canadian beef that has been produced from older cattle slaughtered there.
The forecast for the number of older Canadian cattle to be sent for slaughter in the U.S. - usually because they are too decrepit to produce milk anymore - was lowered substantially Friday, USDA Chief Veterinary Officer John Clifford said. The new forecast shows 75,000 head entering the U.S. in 2008, but predicts that amount will rise to 161,000 head per year by 2012. A previous USDA report predicted an average of about 610,000 head coming down from Canada yearly if the ban was lifted.
There are some U.S. cow-slaughter operations that specialize in processing older beef and dairy cattle. The U.S. was importing about 250,000 head of older Canadian cattle each year before the U.S. banned them, according to the American Meat Institute.
Posted: September 17, 2007 at 4:49 pm
By News Editor
The National Milk Producers Federation (NMPF) expressed their concern over USDA’s rule to reopen the Canadian border to cattle over 30 months of age. CEO Jerry Kozak says the concern is in two areas.
For one, this will mean the border will again be open for replacement dairy heifers to come into the United States. Before the border was closed, Canada exported between 50,000 and 60,000 replacement animals into the U.S. each year. Now while that pales in comparison to the more than 4 million replacements raised in this country each year it is still a question as to whether we can absorb those additional animals. Kozak says the increased heifer numbers would mean increased milk production and lower prices. “Our analysis shows that a return to export levels of 2003 will reduce milk prices by 18% over the next five years, cutting dairy farmer income by $5 billion.” In fact, NMPF had requested USDA and then the Office of Management and Budget do an in depth analysis before opening the border.
The other concern says Kozak is the fact that Canada has had several cases of BSE in cattle that were born after their ruminant-to-ruminant feed ban went into effect. He says there is a pretty good chance there are more positive animals in Canada and that means the possibility that one crosses the border. “Our dairy farmers can’t take any comfort from USDA’s probabilities and statistical projections. The reality is that animals infected with BSE in Canada become our problem when they arrive in the U.S.”
Posted: December 5, 2006 at 11:07 am
By Chuck Zimmerman
The National Milk Producers Federation has its Third Quarter Import Watch now available.
You can find it on their website. (pdf file)
The USDA’s Foreign Agricultural Service has released its import data for dairy products for the first three quarters of 2006. Regarding the dairy products MMPF tracks for Import Watch, most categories are down with MPC the exception. Butter substitutes and American cheese imports up compared to the same period in 2005 as well.
Posted: September 6, 2006 at 8:48 pm
By Chuck Zimmerman
Here’s one of Jim Tillison’s first projects to oversee at the NMPF. It’s their quarterly “Import Watch” report. The second quarter report is now out.
You can find it here: 2nd Quarter Import Watch (pdf)
Posted: August 7, 2006 at 5:06 pm
By Chuck Zimmerman
How do you become the “largest U. S. importer or specialty cheeses? Buy up a bunch of companies. That’s what Fairmount Food Group is doing.
Bing Graffunder, CEO of Fairmount Food Group, LLC, today announced the acquisition of Swissrose International, Inc., the specialty and food service cheese business of ConAgra Foods Inc. The transaction creates the largest U.S. importer and marketer of specialty and deli-style cheeses and is the fifth cheese industry acquisition for the Dallas-based investment firm and its equity sponsor, GTCR Golder Rauner, LLC.
“The addition of Swissrose to our recent acquisitions of DCI Cheese Company, Carter Meister, Green Bay Cheese and G&G Foods is a very significant transaction and a major step toward expanding our branded offerings and delivering our customers the very best products and service,” said Graffunder. “With this acquisition we are more than doubling the size of our specialty cheese portfolio, expanding our U.S. presence from coast to coast and increasing our ability to more effectively serve our growing foodservice business.”
Founded in 1938, Swissrose sells imported and specialty cheeses under brands that include: Joan of Arc, King’s Choice and a number of cheeses from Spain under the Queso Autentico de Espana brand, Chevrion goat cheese and Ilchester cheese from England. It also sells deli cheeses such as Swiss, cheddar and provolone under the County Line brand. Swissrose will continue to operate under its own identity and will report to Tim Omer, CEO of DCI Cheese Company.
Posted: June 5, 2006 at 4:37 pm
By Chuck Zimmerman
Just in case you didn’t know this, the National Milk Producers Federation has a website with quarterly reports (Import Watch) that accomplish the following:
U.S. dairy farmers - and the prices they receive for their milk - increasingly are affected by imported dairy products. Because these imports can greatly alter the supply and demand of the domestic market, NMPF’s newest publication, ImportWatch, will monitor the flow of these products and how they impact the U.S. dairy sector.
The first quarter report for 2006 is now available. (pdf file)
