FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:

Cattle Raisers call for BSE rules to restore normal trade

FORT WORTH, TEXAS, July 15 2005—Responding to a court decision that lifts an injunction against imports of live Canadian cattle, Texas and Southwestern Cattle Raisers Association reiterated its call for governments to collectively establish BSE trading rules and restore normal trade.
         A three-judge federal appeals court panel voted 3-0 July 14 to overturn the injunction; however, the matter is not settled. A lawsuit that would keep the border closed is scheduled for trial on July 27.
         Ranchers-Cattlemen Action Legal Fund (R-CALF) instigated a lawsuit against the U.S. Department of Agriculture to prevent implementation of a rule that would permit imports of cattle from countries that have a “minimal risk” of BSE (mad cow disease). The injunction was issued until the lawsuit could be decided.
         "Court actions seldom give anyone a desired outcome,” said TSCRA President Dick Sherron.
         “TSCRA reiterates the call we made in January for the governments of Canada, the United States, Mexico, Japan and South Korea to collectively establish appropriate BSE trading rules and restore normal trade and markets as soon as possible.
         “Our science-based standards and proven protections provide the best-quality and safest beef supply in the world,” Sherron insisted. “Fair trade based on these facts needs to be a high priority for the Bush Administration and our trading partners."
         Texas and Southwestern Cattle Raisers Association is a 128-year-old trade organization whose 13,000-plus members manage approximately 5.4 million cattle on 70.3 million acres of range and pasture land, primarily in Texas and Oklahoma.

—TSCRA-26-2005—