Only 1 major issue sparates everyone!!!

[BWC]

After attending many BIG C meetings and listening very carefully, and even more carefully in the last week. The term testing appears to be the biggest fight between between ABP, CCA, SSGA, BIG C, and whoever else is in the fray. After all of the rhetoric is boiled away that is the only contentious issue. Everyone agrees that WE DESPRATELY NEED more slaughter capacity. Everyone agrees that the CFIA needs to get a major kick in the pants and stop holding up progress in matters regarding expanding infrastructure(plus a few other choice areas). I think that most people know if not agree that we will never get away from dealing with the USA totally in the cattle industry. Many people agree that further efforts abroad need to be made to expand or create existing or new markets.
Lets maybe observe that their is some common ground with most of the involved parties.
Maybe for advocates of testing cattle for specific markets(I being one) should take a fallback position for the next little while and concentrate on whiping on producer movements towards our governments to get the show on the road in establishing more slaughter capacity...NOW.
Surely this small piece of common ground can work to our advantage, as I mentioned before I do advocate testing for specific indentified markets, but at this point I would be most ecstatic at the thought of a packing plant or two being constructed as we speak, some where any where in Canada.
For those that oppose testing, the fact the you get us radicals off of your back for awhile should provide some relief, and give you something to do rather than defensive posturing.
For the radicals such as myself, at this point I would be very happy that if we together could accomplish forward movement on infrastructure. If the other side of the fence would throw out the bone that during construction of these new plants that we will incorporate space for labs if needed in the future.
Both sides in this argument have valid points, both sides have valuable and wise people working for them, and both sides, right now, must back away take a look at the situation take fall back positions and move forward on the common ground that presently exists.
Maybe, just maybe, some productive relationships will be born and an atmosphere more conducive to progress will be born.
Fighting is not accomplishing anything right now .
I hope someone else sees this moment in time could be an advantage.
An olive branch is in order, no imperative in order to achieve progress.

[gwf]

BWC: You make some very valid points, and I agree that the testing issue should be moved down the prioity list. It will be the buyers of the beef that will ultimately decide. There are many other things that will have to be agreed upon before "Testing or not Testing". It will take a couple of years before anything is ever produced from a plant and by that time the whole testing question may have changed.

[gwf]

I guess that the only thing I might add to your thoughts BWC is that the concession that us so called radicals give would be rewarded with some kind of industry group set up to examine the question of testing. This group could include members of all the organisations listed in your post, and could keep testing on a back burner somewhere, without letting the Americans, or any other potential competitor getting ahead of us. We have so many advantages as far as identification, surveillance, and simply quality of product, that we do not want to let America or anyone else have any advantage in testing or experimentation technology. I beleive that the CFIA not only needs a wake up call to the urgency of fast tracking new packing plants, but as producers, we need to also remind them that BSE is now a Canadian issue,and that we need to examine every facit of testing and even studing BSE from a Canadian standpoint.

[BWC]

I can sure live with any kind of additions or deletions to my statement. Just as long as we get something started soon.

[ALICIA]

Testing is always going to be the issue. But the top issue should be get the plants to kill is the most importent issue because we can get the cattle killed freeze the meat and have just about 9 months or so to get the testing issue dealt with and get markets for the frozen meat. We already know that brain tissue can be keep frozen for 4 months and still test positive for BSE.
- Kill plants up and running.
-mark and tag both brain tissue and carcass
-freeze both to preserve
-deal with testing and buyers for frozen carcass's
I believe that this would be a win win situation for all. In the time that was waisted, we could of had the plants built, and money to worker to build the plants, witch would of boost the economy. It's still not to late is it can we still hang on we have had lots of rain so grass till October at least, thats 4 months, can plants not be build in that time.