Is it worth it?

[per]

A news piece by Mike McLean of 1140 radio...

Voluntary testing for BSE comes at a cost.

Alberta Beef Producers Animal Health and Welfare Manager, Reynold Bergen headed a committee of producers to find out how much a test for the wasting disease would be per animal.


Bergen says the committee obtained quotes from two internationally recognized companies and while the cost of the test kits themselves at five dollars apiece is cheap, one has to factor in the costs like sampling and lab work.

"When you take all of those costs into account, the company's own quotes are that it's somewhere between 24 and 30 dollars a head depending on volume", he says, "so the more you are doing per day the per test cost is cheaper".

Bergen says the committee found that the costs may not outweigh the advantages especially when international standards don't require every animal be BSE tested





The only way we will find out if the costs outweigh the advantages or not is to give it a try. I am surprised the ABP didn't say the costs make it too expensive. For an outfit that has fought this thing so hard they don't sound too convinced that is should not be tried.

[kato]

What is the cost of SRM disposal?

SRM from tested animals should be a lot cheaper to deal with wouldn't you think? After all, this would remove the "Risk" from Specified Risk Materials after an animal has tested negative.

Right now, millions of dollars is being spent to dispose of risk materials from eveything. It's overkill. And it's killing us with the extra costs.

[Willowcreek]

Beef News
Canadian beef plant cuts slaughter, lays off workers

By Janie Gabbett on 4/22/2008 for Meatingplace.com




Troubled Canadian beef processor Atlantic Beef Products has cut back its weekly slaughter rate and laid off about one-third of its staff in an attempt to control costs, according to Canada's CBC News.

The plant, located in Albany, Prince Edward Island, has reduced its weekly slaughter to 280 cattle from more than 400 and laid off about 30 of its roughly 90 employees to stem losses that had reached about $250,000 a month.

In December 2007 the Canadian government granted the processor $12 million in government assistance in a bid to keep the only federally inspected beef processing facility in the Maritimes open. (See Canadian beef plant receives $12 million to stay open on Meatingplace.com, December 10, 2007.) Atlantic Beef is owned by 200 beef producers.

Many Maritime farmers have been shipping cattle to the United States, where they can get higher returns for certain grades of beef and for older cull cattle, according the CBC report.

[rkaiser]

24 to 30 dollars ----- Come on Reynold and the gang at ABP --- your own study now confirms that cost is definitely NOT a factor.

[blackjack]

...with our packers saying they are at a 80 dollar disadvantage to their competition...would a 30 dollar test not save them 50

[grassfarmer]

Did this estimated cost factor in additional expenses incurred if there was a false positive (or a true positive)and it had to be pulled from the line along with the two cattle following it etc?

[loric]

The entire article (which indicates that testing costs are likely closer to $60, not $30) was circulated to all producers on the ABP mailing list, and is on the ABP website.

A more complete picture (i.e. estimate vs. actual costs) and additional background on how and why the elected leadership has consistently arrived at that position. Reynold Bergen wrote his column on BSE testing in the latest Grass Routes. If you missed it in your mailbox, you can download it from ABP's homepage www.albertabeef.org

[per]

I looked on the ABP website before I posted and couldn't find it. I will look again. Those were however the exact words from the radio piece which came from the radio stations website.

[per]

Thanks Lori, I have been waiting for my Grass Roots to arrive since I read about the babysitting article. Kinda wish now I took Grassfarmers advice and never read it. Nothing new in the testing article that hasn't been argued here before. Need some sunshine on the production department (literally) to give time to think of marketing and philosophy.

[farmers_son]

loric said "The entire article...is on the ABP website."

I could not find the article mentioned on the ABP website. Is there a link?
I tried the search feature too but no success with that either.

[per]

F_s, it was in the newsletter on the home page. Click on the newsletter and then scroll down to the article.

[loric]

Sorry - I failed to mention it is located in the latest Grass Routes pdf.

Go to" Click here to download Volume 2, 2008 of our Grass Routes newsletter."