Canada partially lifts beef ban at

Ken Johnston
Editor

There is a little less beef in the restrictions placed on the Canadian side of the border since the December discovery of a cow with Mad Cow Disease in the US.
People crossing the border into Canada can now bring back up to 5 kilograms (10 pounds) of beef from the United States as long as it is for personal use.
Dr. Skrinar, Chief of Import, Food and Animal Division, with the Canadian Food Inspection Agency, said that as of last Thursday the total ban on beef for personal consumption has been lifted. However, a cap of 5 kgs. per day, has been placed on the border. “It used to be 20 kgs. before BSE,” said Skrinar.
Last week CFIA also released some of the restrictions on pet foods. Initially no pet food was allowed to be brought into Canada. Now any pet food that does not contain ruminants, such as beef, can be brought into Canada.
While this is good news for residents and travellers alike entering Canada, Dave Imes of U.S. Customs in Baudette, Minnesota, said nothing has changed on the U.S. side. People can still not bring ruminant products or products containing ruminants into the U.S.
Last week Ag. Officials from Canada, U.S. and Mexico met to work on the BSE issue. They agreed to enhance ongoing efforts to increase harmonization and equivalence of BSE regulations and to address the challenges of the BSE findings in North America with the goal of ensuring the continued safety of the North American food supply.
They also agreed that maintaining consumer confidence in beef is fundamental to the management of the BSE issue and that it will remain a top priority in future discussions to improve the international approach to BSE.
The highly integrated nature of the North American beef industry was recognized, as was the need for a coordinated approach to address both the regulatory and trade aspects of the current BSE challenges.