Web posted
Saturday, June 2, 2007
USDA appeals beef test ruling
By FOSS FARRAR
Traveler Staff Writer
The U.S. Department of Agriculture will appeal a ruling by a federal judge that would allow Creekstone Farms Premium Beef of Arkansas City and other meatpackers to test all their animals for mad cow disease, a USDA spokesman said Friday.
"Our attorneys have notified the judge we will be appealing," said Keith Williams, USDA spokesman.
The USDA had a June 1 deadline to appeal the ruling by U.S. District Judge James Robinson.
Creekstone officials were unavailable Friday afternoon for comment on the government's action. The plant was partially closed Friday and no processing of cattle was done because of a power outage, a security guard who answered the phone said.
In his ruling in March, Robinson noted that Creekstone sought to use the same test the government relies on and said the government didn't have the authority to restrict it.
But the government uses the test more sparingly than Creekstone would, Williams said. It would not test younger animals because the test has been shown not to be effective on cows under 24 months old.
"We test for cows that have problems," Williams said.
The Agriculture Department tests less than 1 percent of slaughtered cows for the disease, the Associated Press reported. The disease can be fatal to humans who eat tainted beef.
Creekstone wants to test all its animals for mad cow to meet the requirements of its Asian customers, specifically Japan and South Korea, company officials have said. The company has a laboratory for testing in its Arkansas City plant, and several Creekstone employees are trained to do the test.
Before filing the lawsuit last year, the meatpacker waited for two years to reestablish trade with Japan, which had banned American beef after mad cow was first discovered in the United States in December 2003.
Japan finally lifted its ban last year but has restricted American beef imports to cattle that is 20 months of age or less, a Creekstone official has said.
Larger meat companies feared that if Creekstone tested its meat and advertised it as safe, they might have to perform the expensive test, too, AP reported.
The federal judge's ruling was to go into effect June first, but the Agriculture Department's planned appeal delays private testing for mad cow until the court challenge is over.
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