Billings, Mont. " Based on information received from R-CALFUSA member-ranchers in Washington state, R-CALFUSA on Monday, Aug. 24, 2009, made a written request to the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) to investigate a potential violation of USDA requirements for the importation into the U.S. of Canadian cattle.
R-CALF USA was informed 405 Canadian feeder cattle that were permitted by the state of Washington to be fed in a dry feedlot at the Agri Beef Co.-owned El Oro Cattle Feeders feedlot in Moses Lake, Wash., were instead diverted to range land and found to be grazing near North Port, Wash., on the Three Rivers Ranger District in the Colville National Forest.
The state of Washington required these imported Canadian cattle to be tested for brucellosis and/or bovine tuberculosis before leaving the dry feedlot, unless they were delivered for slaughter. However, R-CALFUSA's investigation revealed that the imported Canadian cattle were diverted without being tested, and these untested cattle have commingled with domestic cattle herds owned by Washington state ranchers.
As a result, the domestic cattle owned by area ranchers have been exposed to a potential risk of bovine tuberculosis and/or brucellosis.
In its request for investigation, R-CALFUSA has asked USDA to investigate whether the imported Canadian cattle, which allegedly circumvented Washington state testing requirements, also had entered the United States under a health certificate that may have contained false or misleading information.
"Due to Canada's ongoing problem with BSE (bovine spongiform encephalopathy), U.S. law requires the importer of Canadian cattle to disclose both the purpose for which the cattle are imported, as well as the destination where the cattle are to be moved after importation, and this information is to be included on the health certificate for ruminants that must accompany the imported cattle, said R-CALF USA CEO Bill Bullard.
"We want to determine if these imported cattle, which have now potentially exposed domestic cattle to an increased risk for disease, had circumvented not only the state of Washington testing law but the federal import law as well, he emphasized.
In addition, on Tuesday, Aug. 25, 2009, R-CALFUSA filed a separate written request for an investigation concerning this incident with the U.S. Department of Justice and USDA's Grain Inspection Packers and Stockyards Administration (GIPSA).
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