Ostercamps article

[ALICIA]

So what is this IF IT DOESN'T SHOW UP IT MUST BE OKA.

[cowman]

I don't doubt that farm receipts are up. Hogs are actually pretty good right now and there was a lot of money made on canola last year. Improved crop insurance also might have added to the bottom line?
By the figures you gave on cattle being such a small part of actual income for most farms I would suspect a lot of farmers see the BSE crisis as little more than an irritant? Also when NISA ended a lot of people got a pretty decent check...I wonder if that was factored in?

[kato]

Here's a ramification to think about. If the cut off becomes 20 months, have we seen the last of the grassed yearlings?

Calf born in April. Goes to grass the next June at 14 months. Comes home in October at 18 months. Finished in 8 more weeks? I don't think so.

Another problem. Teeth don't tell 20 month old cattle. This means that you need verification back to the farm as to birthdate on every animal.

I would think that with our traceback already in place, it would be a lot easier for us to implement birthdate recording than it will be for the Americans.

Because of this, the Americans are going to push some more on the Japanese to bend a little farther.

As for us....here's an opportunity. I just hope our 'fearless leaders' see it. The Americans are ready and willing to cut Canada out of the picture, and have done so with their Japanese negotiations, so let's get at it and think for ourselves.