EURO-BRIEFS
EURO-BRIEFS
• FRANCE is poised to abandon its policy of whole herd slaughter when a single case of BSE is discovered, in line with an earlier recommendation from the food standards agency, AFSSA. The new policy has now been given the green light by the national food council (CAN) and will become law shortly. Cattle born after Jan 1, 2002 will be spared as the authorities look to contain the costs of controlling BSE.
• BRUSSELS is scaling down its testing controls for US beef shipped to the EU under the "non-hormone treated cattle programme". The scheme was relaunched in September 1999 with 100% testing following the discovery of traces of xenobiotic hormones. This was reduced to 20% in September 2000, and is now being scaled back again to random testing.
• CLASSICAL swine fever appeared again in continental Europe this week, with Germany reporting its fourth case since last October in a herd in Rhineland-Pfalz. Infection by wild pigs is being blamed. Neighbouring Luxembourg also reported its first outbreak, with 150 pigs on one farm being destroyed.
• FRANCES trade surplus in agricultural goods fell by 20% last year as poor weather damaged the wheat crop and BSE fears cut beef exports. Latest figures from the French ministry of agriculture show the overall food export surplus slipped from k9.4bn (£5.7bn) in 2000 to k7.5bn (£4.6bn) in 2001.
• IRISH sheep farmers staged a major protest at Tullamore, Co Offaly this week against the governments new sheep register. Irish Farmers Association sheep chairman, Laurence Fallon, described the scheme as "a bureaucratic monstrosity". Producers recognised the need for tagging and traceability, but the current complex arrangement was unworkable.