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Open letter from Jan Lyons, President, National Beef
Cattlemen's Association, USA
As NCBA
President, I have the privilege to represent cattle producers at many
levels in Washington, D.C. When I put on my "go-to-town" boots
and leave the ranch in Kansas for DC, I have a chance to interact with
many people who know very little about how we care for our cattle and what
we do to produce the safest beef in the world. Over the past few months,
I've been surprised to see what some city folks are choosing to believe
about our profession. Thanks to recent activist actions by a few
disgruntled ranchers, consumer media seems to be rallying against all of
us. Recent national news outlets and consumers are making claims that
cattle ranchers care nothing about the safety of beef, and say we're
conspiring with the USDA against consumers to stop BSE testing and food
safety measures. They say we're blaming our 'mad cow' on Canada,
hypocritically fighting to keeping all borders closed while asking for our
export opportunities to open. How sad it is that people purporting to
represent cattlemen are spurring this effort to further their own agenda
by questioning the safety of our product.
Where does this madness come from? It has been tough for all of us since
December 23. You'd think we had enough of fighting the 'mad cow' scare
tactics. But lately, a few seemed determined to shoot themselves in the
foot, endangering the credibility of the entire industry in the process.
I've said it before and I'll say it again. We must stop this internal
industry hoopla, before it's too late and consumers lose all faith in
American ranchers and simply choose to quit eating our product. It is
because of our consumers' confidence that we have the highest demand for
beef and the best cattle prices that we have seen in recent times.
Private proposals for 100 percent testing of cattle for BSE created
hysteria in top media outlets across the country. Most Americans, whose
dinner tables reside far from life on the ranch, began to question the
safety of our product once again. If a few in the industry are promoting
this blanket testing, they wondered, it must be needed?! Meanwhile, there
is absolutely no scientific justification or rationale for 100 percent BSE
testing and it does not make an already safe product any safer. Even Japan
recently agreed that they would not require such testing for U.S. beef, as
they struggle with their own testing system. What started out as a
marketing proposal for one company became a firestorm that hurt the
credibility of the entire cattle industry and questioned the safety of all
U.S. beef. Never before, has a company interfered in international
negotiations between the U.S. and other countries for personal gain at the
expense of the entire industry.
Testing does nothing to enhance the safety of our products. If it did,
cattlemen would be first to support it, as providing the safest beef in
the world has always been our top priority. We cannot compromise the
science that serves as the basis for food safety and global trade of safe
food. As international experts agree, 100 percent testing of cattle for
BSE is not scientifically justified and does not provide additional
protection for consumers. We must continue to explain to consumers that
what does protect our food supply from this disease are the multiple
firewalls erected over the past 15 years - including the feed ban,
surveillance system and removal of specified risk material from the food
supply. BSE is not found in beef muscle tissue. Any product that is at
risk from BSE is removed during processing.
Another recent mass media frenzy, created by fellow cattlemen, suddenly
left U.S. consumers questioning the safety of bone-in beef products. After
decades of educational efforts explaining why all beef products are safe
from BSE, a few cattle producer's implications about unsafe products in
the Canadian food supply are chipping away at the credibility of the
entire industry. This is a very scary slope to go down, for any of us. As
NCBA members explain over and over again, 96 percent of the world's
population lives outside the United States. Expanding our future
profitability depends upon our ability to promote our exceptional U.S.
beef products to this massive international consumer base. Throwing stones
at Canada, our neighboring nation, and scaring consumers about the overall
safety of North American beef is a seriously dangerous tactic. The
ramifications are extensive and long-term. We must continue to place a
high priority on reestablishing trade. But trade at any cost is a bad
idea. The international trade model for the future must be based on
science and it must be a model that all countries use as a standard as
they encounter similar trade problems.
This spring has been, as expected, a hectic one for producer members and
leaders of the National Cattlemen's Beef Association. Not only have we
been working non-stop with legislation and press concerns in the aftermath
of the December 23 BSE case, we are also working on more than 30 policy
issues on Capitol Hill that have far reaching implications for our ranches
back home and our profitability. I have been flying back and forth to
Washington D.C. for various legislative concerns, including tax issues,
trade issues, country-of-origin labeling, food safety, the beef checkoff,
and even nutrition issues. The calendar in Washington, D.C. is always full
with hearings, testimony, new legislation, comments due, conferences, data
reports, press conferences and media requests.
NCBA is proud to represent our cattle producer-members on a vast array of
policy issues. The effectiveness of NCBA hinges on our long- standing
relationships with policy makers and regulators and agency people and the
Administration. Never fear, we will certainly not allow the recent media
firestorms brought about by a few internal voices in the cattle industry
to succeed in breaking down our exceptional relationships with Capitol
Hill, the Administration, the press, and U.S. consumers. We will continue
to fight against erroneous information and continue to foster a positive
economic environment for all cattle producers. As the largest organization
representing America's cattle industry, we will continue to be the leader
in education, influencing public policy to improve producer profitability
and in preserving our heritage and future.
Best regards,
Jan Lyons
NCBA President |
