Commissioner Blackham Supports
Legislation Allowing Interstate Shipment
of State-Inspected Meat
Utah Commissioner of Agriculture and Food, Leonard Blackham today offered support for efforts underway to allow state-inspected beef to be shipped nationally. Blackham added his name to a letter of support written by the President of NASDA (National Association of State Departments of Agriculture) allowing state-inspected meat to be shipped across state lines.
Legislation sponsored by U.S. Senators Sen. Orrin Hatch, Herb Kohl (WI), Kent Conrad (ND), Mike Enzi (WY), and Max Baucus (MT) would overturn a nearly 30-year ban on interstate shipments of state-inspected meat. The action would allow Utah’s ranchers to compete more evenly with national and international meat producers.
Ironically, meat and poultry products from 38 foreign countries can be freely shipped and sold anywhere in the United States.
“Locally grown, processed and inspected beef is as good as federally inspected products,” said Commissioner Blackham.
Many other food items such as milk, fruit, vegetables, and fish are freely shipped across state lines after being inspected by state programs. Yet certain meat products are prohibited from being sold in
interstate commerce, despite decades of meeting or surpassing the federal inspection standards.
“This ban doesn’t make sense, and it hurts Utah’s ranchers and small business owners, and there’s no reason for it,” Hatch said. “States are getting a bad deal. State inspection programs have proven to be just as effective as Federal programs, yet state-inspected meat can’t be shipped across state lines. It’s high time we update this unnecessary, unjust ban that puts Utah’s small businesses at such a disadvantage.”
Federal law requires the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) to inspect all meat products slaughtered for human consumption, and in the late 1960s Congress created state inspection programs that are mandated to be “at least equal to” the Federal inspection program. Utah has 32 plants authorized to inspect meat, part of nearly 2,000 plants nationwide largely run by small businesses that cater to the needs of small, family-run farms and ranches.
The following is the text of Commissioner Roger Johnson’s letter in support of interstate shipments of state-inspected beef.
Where’s The Beef?
By Roger Johnson, Commissioner, North Dakota Department of Agriculture
American consumers enjoy the safest meat and poultry supply in the world. State agriculture departments
and regulatory programs play a critical role in assuring that our food supply is safe, wholesome,
unadulterated and properly labeled.
Our state-inspected, locally-produced meats are some of the best, high quality specialty products in this
country. They are mostly small, family-owned businesses who make popular and award-winning products
such as bratwurst, smoked sausages, organic lamb, beef jerky and other ethnic specialty meat products.
An outdated law prohibits the sale of state-inspected products (beef, poultry, pork, lamb and goat) across
state lines—even though these products must meet or exceed federal inspection standards.
Ironically, meat and poultry products from 38 foreign countries can be freely shipped and sold anywhere in
the United States. Meat and poultry imports from foreign countries have increased significantly in recent
years, with the US importing more than 4.3 billion pounds in 2005.
Currently, imported meat products
comprise 20% of the red meat consumed in our country – more than double that of state-inspected meat
sold and consumed.
Imported meat and poultry products do not face the same rigorous safety and inspection standards that
state inspection programs undergo. State inspection programs undergo annual audits containing more
than 125 pages of compliance procedures. By comparison, USDA’s audit document for evaluating the 38
foreign inspection systems is a one-page checklist. In fact, USDA estimates that less than 10 percent of
all meat and poultry imports were physically examined in 2005.
There are many reasons why the restriction on interstate meat sales doesn’t make sense. No other food
commodities inspected by state authorities are prohibited from being shipped across state lines. Other
state-inspected food products, including perishable items such as milk, dairy products, fruit, vegetables,
fish, and shellfish, are marketed freely across the country.
Lawmakers in Washington have studied the issue of interstate meat sales for more than a decade.
The US House of Representatives has passed legislation to deal with this issue. Sens. Herb Kohl (WI),
Orrin Hatch (UT), Kent Conrad (ND), Mike Enzi (WY) and Max Baucus (MT) have introduced bipartisan
legislation in the US Senate to remedy this situation. This legislation (S. 1149 and S. 1150) would level the
economic playing field for American producers and allow them the same US market access that 38 foreign
countries currently enjoy.
It is time for Congress to act. American consumers deserve greater access to safe, nutritious products
from state-inspected meat and poultry processors. And American livestock producers, processors and
small businesses deserve to compete in the national marketplace. It’s just common sense and it’s the
right thing to do.
Posted October 4, 2007
