I was very outraged when I read this article. We almost can't sell our cattle and on the other hand there is a shortage of beef? Again. the packers try to send everything to the States so they can make even more profit with the exchange rate!!! They keep our prices down, charge the public high prices, and profit further from the export. Good, great job. Where are our federal and provincial governments? Why do they not take action. It seems that Mr. Klein rather supports those people!
By Barry Wilson
Ottawa bureau
--Western Producer, Thursday March 4, 2004
The Canadian beef secondary processing industry is complaining about a shortage of beef to make its products, even as cattle producers face record cattle inventories and the government continues to block supplementary offshore beef imports the industry says it needs.
It is a dilemma presented to the House of Commons agriculture committee last week - shortage for one sector of the industry in the face of surplus in another.
"We are quite dismayed with the current state of affairs in the Canadian beef industry" said Scott Zies, co-chair of the Alliance for Fair Trade in Beef representing the secondary processors.
"On the surface, we all seem to want the same thing, unobstructed trade for our businesses and profitability for all players in order to stay in the beef industry for the long term. In reality, this is not the case. Talk is cheap and emerging behaviours clearly indicate our industry has been divided and almost conquered."
The problem, said Zies, is that after international borders were closed with the May 20 announcement of BSE, the packers wanted a restriction on imports over levels required by trade deals. There were many surplus Canadian cows without a foreign home. The secondary processors agreed and supplementary imports were stopped.
Since September, when the United States and Mexico agreed to accept some muscle cuts from younger cattle, the packing industry concentrated again on exports and shorted the secondary processors. One fallout has been that the Subway fast food chain has warned that it may not be able to get enough steak to continue to offer steak sandwiches.
The secondary processors say they are frustrated.
"Our first preference as the source is Canadian meat," said Zies. "The Canadian cattlemen and the packers are not committed to our domestic market. They built their industry based on exports."
The secondary processors complained that federal agriculture minister Bob Speller and trade minister Jim Peterson have ignored their demand that if the domestic industry cannot supply product, supplementary beef imports from abroad should be allowed.
They called for federal leadership.
"The Canadian beef industry is in complete turmoil, the entire industry, not just the primary sector," said processor representative Wayne Holland. "Clearly, leadership has to step forward and take command. There's a freight train of beef problems headed down the track because nobody is in control of the train."
Some MPs were skeptical, suggesting the processors cannot buy Canadian supplies because they are not willing to pay adequate prices.
The processors argued they cannot compete with buyers in the U.S. and Mexico for meat from younger animals and there are not enough slaughter facilities in Canada for animals older than 30 months to guarantee a reliable supply.
It means they cannot guarantee supplies to fast food chains and other customers and they are losing contracts even as Canadian packers and cattle producers oppose resuming supplementary imports to allow the processors to meet contracts. It is "selfishness" by packers and cattle producers, they said.
"I don't know what else we can do," said Zies. "We've bought every pound of (domestic) meat made available to us. Unless you're willing to consider restricting exports to keep that meat at home, I'm not sure what else we can do."
Alberta Liberal MP David Kilgour, a critic of the packers and their recent profits, said he considered that part of the industry the responsible party.
"Do the packers have no sense of decency?" he asked. "Are they prepared to have everybody that wants to eat beef in Canada go without because they want to export to Mexico or the U.S.? Is that the nub of the problem?"
By Barry Wilson
Ottawa bureau
--Western Producer, Thursday March 4, 2004
The Canadian beef secondary processing industry is complaining about a shortage of beef to make its products, even as cattle producers face record cattle inventories and the government continues to block supplementary offshore beef imports the industry says it needs.
It is a dilemma presented to the House of Commons agriculture committee last week - shortage for one sector of the industry in the face of surplus in another.
"We are quite dismayed with the current state of affairs in the Canadian beef industry" said Scott Zies, co-chair of the Alliance for Fair Trade in Beef representing the secondary processors.
"On the surface, we all seem to want the same thing, unobstructed trade for our businesses and profitability for all players in order to stay in the beef industry for the long term. In reality, this is not the case. Talk is cheap and emerging behaviours clearly indicate our industry has been divided and almost conquered."
The problem, said Zies, is that after international borders were closed with the May 20 announcement of BSE, the packers wanted a restriction on imports over levels required by trade deals. There were many surplus Canadian cows without a foreign home. The secondary processors agreed and supplementary imports were stopped.
Since September, when the United States and Mexico agreed to accept some muscle cuts from younger cattle, the packing industry concentrated again on exports and shorted the secondary processors. One fallout has been that the Subway fast food chain has warned that it may not be able to get enough steak to continue to offer steak sandwiches.
The secondary processors say they are frustrated.
"Our first preference as the source is Canadian meat," said Zies. "The Canadian cattlemen and the packers are not committed to our domestic market. They built their industry based on exports."
The secondary processors complained that federal agriculture minister Bob Speller and trade minister Jim Peterson have ignored their demand that if the domestic industry cannot supply product, supplementary beef imports from abroad should be allowed.
They called for federal leadership.
"The Canadian beef industry is in complete turmoil, the entire industry, not just the primary sector," said processor representative Wayne Holland. "Clearly, leadership has to step forward and take command. There's a freight train of beef problems headed down the track because nobody is in control of the train."
Some MPs were skeptical, suggesting the processors cannot buy Canadian supplies because they are not willing to pay adequate prices.
The processors argued they cannot compete with buyers in the U.S. and Mexico for meat from younger animals and there are not enough slaughter facilities in Canada for animals older than 30 months to guarantee a reliable supply.
It means they cannot guarantee supplies to fast food chains and other customers and they are losing contracts even as Canadian packers and cattle producers oppose resuming supplementary imports to allow the processors to meet contracts. It is "selfishness" by packers and cattle producers, they said.
"I don't know what else we can do," said Zies. "We've bought every pound of (domestic) meat made available to us. Unless you're willing to consider restricting exports to keep that meat at home, I'm not sure what else we can do."
Alberta Liberal MP David Kilgour, a critic of the packers and their recent profits, said he considered that part of the industry the responsible party.
"Do the packers have no sense of decency?" he asked. "Are they prepared to have everybody that wants to eat beef in Canada go without because they want to export to Mexico or the U.S.? Is that the nub of the problem?"
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