An American meat packers’ association is requesting intervener status in a lawsuit between the U.S. Department of Agriculture and a U.S. group fighting to keep Canadian cattle out of the United States.
The National Meat Association is opposed to legal actions taken by R-CALF-USA to stall a rule that would expand the list of Canadian beef products and live cattle allowed to enter the U.S.
“It is causing my members severe hardship,” said Rosemary Mucklow, executive director of the meat association, which represents more than 500 packers, processors and suppliers.
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R-CALF filed a restraining order last April to prevent the entry of bone-in meat products to the U.S., stating the USDA acted without public consultation in broadening the trade list.
In May the court granted an injunction that stopped bone-in meat shipments and provided R-CALF with updates from the USDA on the rule-making process every 45 days, as well as five days notice before the final rule is published to resume live trade.
Mucklow said that ruling is unfair.
“We want to be parties to the litigation so we can make sure that whatever happens from here on out is more fair to the people who haven’t been heard from, such as the beef packers who lost the Canadian animals,” she said from her office in California.
Some NMA members have been forced to cut production and lay off employees. A plant at Tama, Iowa, closed Aug. 20.
“The court is not hearing the devastating effects that this is having, particularly on smaller beef slaughterers in the United States. It is also having tangential effects on lamb slaughterers,” Mucklow said.
The American Meat Institute has decided not to join NMA at this time, said spokesperson Mark Dopp.
USDA has reviewed more than 3,300 comments but the status of the relaxation of trade restrictions is uncertain.
R-CALF has asked its 90,000 members to donate $100 each to continue the legal battle against the department and keep borders closed.
R-CALF said the USDA is weakening American meat import standards by relaxing the trade restrictions. On Sept. 13 the organization submitted a 37-page comment to the government outlining its concerns over new rules to mitigate BSE risks.
Calls to the R-CALF head office in Billings, Montana, were not returned before press time on Sept. 20.
