Page 865 of articles about news

Faced with the difficulties suffered by the swine sector due to an important decline in finances, the Minister for Agriculture, Michel Barnier, has proposed a support plan for the sector which with help from the banks will be worth 33 million euros. (Original in French. Read Google translation here).

Member States have made significant progress in developing coexistence legislation during the last years. This development of the legislative framework has gone hand in hand with a moderate expansion of the cultivation of GM crops. At the present time there is no indication of the need to deviate from the subsidiarity-based approach on coexistence. The Commission will continue to develop recommendations for crop-specific technical segregation measures together with Member States and stakeholders. These are the main conclusion of the second report from the European Commission on the coexistence of GM crops with conventional and organic farming

Construction of a new biosafety facility on the Wooster campus of the Ohio Agricultural Research and Development Center (O.A.R.D.C.) was approved by The Ohio State University Board of Trustees during its April 3 meeting. In addition to three biosafety level 3 (BSL-3) labs, the Plant and Animal Agrosecurity Research (P.A.A.R.) Facility will include two BSL-3 Ag isolation rooms, which are needed to work with large animals, such as cows and pigs. P.A.A.R. will be the only facility in Ohio and one of only five nationally with the capacity for both plant and animal research at these high safety levels, according to the university.

The Royal Show 2009 will be the last in its present form to be held by the Royal Agricultural Society of England at Stoneleigh Park.

A bid by farmers to claim damages following the 2007 foot-and-mouth disease outbreak has been dismissed. The seven remaining farmers’ claims, in the National Farmers’ Union-backed legal case, were dismissed on 31 March, when judgment was handed down following a hearing in the High Court in February. A further seven claims had already been settled without an admission of liability.

The increase in import taxes have helped significantly reduce the quantity of imported meat and poultry entering Vietnam said the Agricultural Information Centre under the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development. Total imports of meat and poultry declined by roughly 21-24%.

Overall growth in the sale of organic produce slipped to a modest 1.7 per cent in 2008 and the market is now worth £2.1 billion. The livestock sector did not fare much better as they suffered from high feed prices and faltering demand. UK organic pork production is expected to dip by around 40 per cent in 2009.

The U.S. Department of Agriculture today issued the 2008 Annual Report of the Packers and Stockyards Program. The report assesses the general economic state of the livestock and poultry industries; describes changing business practices in those industries; and identifies market operations or activities that appear to raise concerns under the Packers and Stockyards Act.

MAF Biosecurity New Zealand (MAFBNZ) issued provisional Import Heath Standards (IHSs) for pig meat, pig meat products and by-products from Canada, the EU, Mexico and the USA. The four provisional IHSs include risk management measures based on a risk analysis on porcine reproductive and respiratory syndrome (PRRS) virus in pig meat. PRRS is a viral disease of pigs found in many pig-producing countries, but which is not found in New Zealand or Australia.

On March 25th, 2009 the Ukrainian Customs Service stopped charging an additional 13% import duty for beef, pork, offal, poultry products, processed beef and pork; raw sugar, grape wine and fermented beverages in excess of WTO negotiated levels. Some legal aspects of this duty decrease are still not clear, but previously negotiated customs duties are now restored.

The world economic crisis that began in 2008 has major consequences for U.S. agriculture. The weakening of global demand because of emerging recessions and declining economic growth result in reduced export demand and lower agricultural commodity prices, compared with those in 2008. These, in turn, reduce U.S. farm income and place downward pressures on farm real estate values. So far, the overall impact on U.S. agriculture is not as severe as on the broader U.S. economy because the record-high agricultural exports, prices, and farm income in 2007 and 2008 put U.S. farmers on solid financial ground. Moreover, the debt equity ratios in agriculture tend to be more conservative than those in most other sectors of the economy. There is much uncertainty concerning the depth and extent of the crisis. The outcomes for U.S. agriculture are dependent on whether or not there is a global realignment of exchange rates to correct current macroeconomic imbalances.

Two percent fewer pigs will be slaughtered this year in the European Union according to figures submitted by member countries. Not all countries have sent in their data, and past forecasts have not been particularly accurate, but the trend towards tighter supplies is unmistakable.

First Deputy Prime Minister Viktor Zubkov said Friday that Russia, the largest importer of U.S. chicken in 2008, would become self-sufficient in poultry and pork in 2011.

This notice reissues FSIS Notice 16-08. This notice provides instructions for Public Health Veterinarians (PHVs) and other inspection program personnel to conduct humane handling activities randomly throughout their tour of duty. Also, PHVs are to encourage establishments to develop and implement a systematic approach for the humane handling of animals.