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10/24/2005 Thailand to Resume Imports of Some U.S. Beef Products (Billings, Mont.) – R-CALF USA was pleased to learn that Thailand has decided to resume imports of some U.S. beef products, after an extended ban since December 2003 when a Canadian-borne cow imported into Washington state was discovered to have bovine spongiform encephalopathy (BSE). R-CALF USA continues to encourage significant reforms in
U.S. and international trade policies affecting cattle and beef. Over the
past decade, the United States’ cattle and beef industries lost significant
ground in international trade. The U.S. “USDA (U.S. Department of Agriculture) reports that the United States was the second largest exporter of beef in the world in the year 2000,” said R-CALF USA President and Co-Founder Leo McDonnell. “Unfortunately, the U.S. has regressed to the rank of ninth in overall beef exports for 2004.” In an effort to reverse this unfavorable trend, R-CALF USA has been meeting with U.S. trade officials to address the global market distortions that disadvantage the U.S. cattle industry. Earlier this year, at the invitation of Sen. Max Baucus, D-Mont., R-CALF USA officials spent a week participating in a fourth round of negotiations for the U.S.-Thailand Free Trade Agreement. During these negotiations, R-CALF USA officials discussed future trade opportunities with the Thailand ambassador and the Thailand trade team. “It’s good to see such efforts eventually bear fruit,” McDonnell said. “The resumption of beef exports to Thailand is a step in the right direction toward leveling the elusive global playing field, and we look forward to reviewing what beef products Thailand will be accepting and hope the standards are consistent with U.S. import standards.” McDonnell said Thailand has a population of 65 million and could become an important market for U.S. beef.
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