TheMeatSite Newsletter - 31 August 2011

TheMeatSite Weekly Newsletter

Wednesday 31st August 2011

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Welcome to this week's newsletter

EC Introduces EID for Beef Cattle

The European Commission is to bring in Electronic Identification (EID) for cattle in a bid to boost food safety and better safeguard animal health in the EU.

The Commission proposal provides the legal framework for the introduction, for the first time and on a voluntary basis, of an electronic identification system (EID) for cattle.

Bovine EID is already used in several EU States on a private basis mainly for farm management purposes.

Its implementation on a wider scale will strengthen the current traceability system for beef and dairy cattle and food products making it faster and more accurate. It is also designed to have major traceability benefits for the meat processing sector.

In China, the recent scandal surrounding the use of clenbuterol in feed for pigs to enhance their lean content has now seen more than 900 people arrested.

The crackdown by the authorities has identified an underground ring manufacturing and distributing clenbuterol in 63 cities in the provinces of Hunan, Sichuan, Hubei and Henan, as well as Tianjin Municipality.

In Japan, the last ban on shipments of beef and beef cattle has been lifted. The ban was imposed following the tsunami and the discovery of a rise in radio active levels in the meat as a result of the breakdown at the Fukushima nuclear plant.

Chris Harris

TheMeatSite Book Focus

Bovine Meat Inspection - 2nd Edition
An updated and improved edition of the popular Bovine Meat Inspection series. The full colour photos make these invaluable tools for those whom knowledge of anatomy, diseases and other conditions is required.
Order Now Online

EU Beef Farming Systems and CAP Regulations
This book highlights disparities in CAP implementation and presents the main developments regarding EU beef farming systems: size increase, farm/regional specialization, adaptation to market requirements and, eventually, social expectations. It is of interest to policy makers and all those who concern themselves with the cattle industry.
Order Now Online

This Week's Feature Articles

We have 5 new features this week:

New Product Development
Product development has become a key differentiator for companies in the market and Product Lifecycle Management can play a important part in the product lifecycle, writes, Chris Wright for The Meat Site.

Disputes over Benefits of Reducing Salt in Diet
Scientific conflict has arisen over the benefits of reduced dietary salt.

Natural Ingredients to Control C. Perfringens
Results of a study by a research team at Iowa State University are to be used to prepare guidelines for manufacturing naturally cured frankfurter and naturally cured ham products in a manner that will achieve a safety level that is equivalent to traditionally cured meat products without altering the uniqueness of this category of processed meats.

A Tale of Freeze-Drying Fish
Health-conscious consumers are constantly looking for ways to improve their diets, and one way is to eat more fish, according to the USDA Agricultural Research Service.

Russian Federation Poultry & Poultry Products Annual Report 2011
Broiler production in Russia in 2012 is forecast to increase by five per cent and reach another record of 13.6 million metric tons, according to Joao F. Silva in the latest GAIN report from the USDA Foreign Agricultural Service.