I hope you are all right but I fear you are being optimistic with the timescale. As usual there was no logic in a ban in the first place - OTM beef could have been crossing the border in September 03 in boxes the same as UTM beef - as long as the specified offals were removed there was no food safety issue.
That aside the bureaucrats as usual will be in no hurry - why should they be? six or twelve months are all the same to them.
I think if we do see movement on this issue it will be boxed beef first with live cattle some way behind. Fat culls could be hauled straight to slaughter plants in sealed liners but if they are writing a rule to allow OTM live cattle to cross the border won't that by implication have to be written to also allow them to go to a feedlot for further fattening which opens up a whole different kettle of fish because of the lack of a US traceability system. I would think they will possibly allow live OTM cattle to cross the border at the same time as breeding cattle - who knows when that will be?
That aside the bureaucrats as usual will be in no hurry - why should they be? six or twelve months are all the same to them.
I think if we do see movement on this issue it will be boxed beef first with live cattle some way behind. Fat culls could be hauled straight to slaughter plants in sealed liners but if they are writing a rule to allow OTM live cattle to cross the border won't that by implication have to be written to also allow them to go to a feedlot for further fattening which opens up a whole different kettle of fish because of the lack of a US traceability system. I would think they will possibly allow live OTM cattle to cross the border at the same time as breeding cattle - who knows when that will be?
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