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Cattle groups support Tester bill to halt Brazilian beef imports
All three major cattle groups are supporting legislation to suspend Brazilian beef imports into the US.
The bill, introduced by U.S. Senator Jon Tester of Montana, comes after repeated issues with Brazil’s delayed reporting of Bovine Spongiform Encephalopathy (BSE) in Brazilian beef. The proposed legislation would halt beef imports until experts can conduct a systematic review of the commodity’s safety. Tester says domestic producers and consumers deserve to know if Brazil’s beef and reporting standards are making the grade.
Most countries report cases of BSE to the World Organization of Animal Health (OIE) immediately, however,cattle groups support the Tester bill to halt Brazilian beef imports Brazil announced in September two cases of atypical BSE that were detected in June of that year. Brazil also waited months or longer to report cases in 2019, 2014, and 2012.
The proposed legislation is supported by the US Cattlemen’s Association, the National Cattlemen’s Beef Association, and R-CALF USA.
