The World Organization for Animal Health, or OIE, has designated the Canadian Food Inspection Agency’s National Centre for Foreign Animal Disease (NCFAD) in Winnipeg, Canada, as a reference laboratory for avian influenza (AI) and bovine spongiform encephalopathy (BSE). Dr. John Pasick, head, Classical Swine Fever and Avian Diseases Unit, has been designated by the OIE as the lab’s expert for AI, and Dr. Stefanie Czub, head, Pathology, has been designated as the expert for BSE.
A lab designated as a reference laboratory by the OIE functions as a center of expertise and standardization for a particular disease or topic; develops new procedures for its diagnosis and control; provides scientific and technical training for scientific personnel from other OIE member countries; coordinates scientific and technical research in collaboration with other labs; and provides diagnostic testing and surge capacity to other countries, among other functions.
The NCFAD designation brings to 17 the number of reference laboratories and collaborating centers located in Canada.
Foster Farms Closing Oregon Plant
Foster Farms will discontinue the company’s chicken processing operations at its Creswell, OR, plant in October. The decision was made in efforts to consolidate Northwest operations and to maximize production capabilities at the company’s facilities in Kelso, WA. The company will continue to operate its existing Oregon City hatchery and Donald feed mill.
Foster Farms has been a part of the Creswell community since 1987. The plant has a staff of about 75 employees. Approximately 22 employees will be not affected by the change and will continue regular, full-time employment at the facility. Most all employees will be offered the opportunity to relocate to the Kelso plant.
Grant Awarded to Study Poultry Litter Uses
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has awarded the University of Georgia Department of Biological and Agricultural Engineering a $58,000 grant to research innovative uses of poultry litter to benefit energy, fuel, and environmental and economic demands.
Georgia currently ranks first in the nation in the production of poultry and poultry litter, and disposing of the litter is a growing environmental concern. One of the potential uses for poultry litter is energy production. This research project is being undertaken to study alternative uses of the litter to produce fertilizer pellets, bio-oils for energy, or char to be used as fuel or a fertilizer.
EPA is joined by the U.S. Department of Agriculture, U.S. Department of Energy, and the state of Georgia in funding the development and implementation of the project.
Industry Well Represented on Committees
Dr. David Meeker, vice president of Scientific Services, National Renderers Association (NRA), was recently appointed to several committees, providing industry representation in a variety of government and affiliate organizations.
Meeker has been appointed to the U.S. Department of Agriculture Secretary’s Advisory Committee on Foreign Animal and Poultry Diseases. The committee advises the Secretary of Agriculture on actions necessary to prevent the introduction of foreign livestock and poultry diseases into the United States. In addition, the committee advises the secretary on contingency planning and on maintaining a state of preparedness to deal with these diseases, if introduced. The first meeting of this newly re-appointed committee was held in mid-September.
Meeker was also recently appointed to a Council for Agricultural Science and Technology (CAST) committee that will write disposal guidelines for cattle mortalities. Dr. Ross Hamilton, Darling International, Inc., was appointed to a similar CAST committee working in concert to write disposal guidelines for swine mortalities. CAST assembles, interprets, and communicates credible, science-based information regionally, nationally, and internationally to legislators, regulators, policymakers, the media, the private sector, and the public.
A third committee Meeker was also appointed to is the Beef Industry Food Safety Council (BIFSCo) Advisory Panel. BIFSCo brings together representatives from all segments of the beef industry to develop industry-wide, science-based strategies to solve problems of foodborne pathogens in beef, focusing on research and consumer education. Beef safety research is supported by the Cattlemen’s Beef Board with funds from the $1-per-head beef checkoff program. BIFSCo is coordinated on behalf of the Cattlemen’s Beef Board and state beef councils by the National Cattlemen’s Beef Association.
Renderer Achieves Safety Record
Tyson Foods-owned River Valley Animal Foods (RVAF) in Robards, KY, was honored in mid-September for achieving an unprecedented workplace safety record, going five years, or one million safe hours, without an accident resulting in a lost day from work. According to Tyson, the plant, which converts poultry by-products into pet food ingredients, is the first by-product rendering facility to ever achieve such a safety record within Tyson Foods.
“This award is a tribute to the team members at this facility who have successfully made workplace safety a top priority,” said Tyson Chief Executive Officer Richard L. Bond. “I’m proud of the way they’ve worked together to promote a safe and healthy work environment. They’re demonstrating the importance of keeping safety at the forefront of everyone’s mind.”
The RVAF plant in Robards employs 90 and is one of eight similar poultry rendering facilities operated by Tyson. The plant conducts monthly safety training and regular safety meetings. Employees are also offered safety performance incentives and celebrate safety achievements with special dinners.
The rendering plant is part of Tyson’s Robards poultry complex, which employs nearly 1,200 people and includes a hatchery, feed mill, processing plant, and cold storage facility.
Sanz Joins CWT
Bill Sanz has joined Clean Water Technology (CWT), Inc., as sales manager. He was most recently a member of the U.S. Filter marketing department sales team and previously managed U.S. Filter’s overseas business in South America. Prior to that, Sanz worked with water treatment companies including Dow Chemical, ICI, and Culligan International.
Sanz has a bachelor of science degree from the University of California at Los Angeles and attended the U.S. Military Academy. He comes to CWT with a diverse 25-year background in water and wastewater treatment.
Tyson to Close, Consolidate Beef Plants
Tyson Foods, Inc., is consolidating its beef plants in the Pacific Northwest as part of a comprehensive plan to operate its fresh meats business more efficiently.
Effective October 16, 2006, Tyson Fresh Meats, Inc., a subsidiary of Tyson Foods, will permanently close its beef slaughter plant in Boise, ID, and scale back processing operations at its Pasco, WA, complex. The Pasco plant has historically operated one shift of beef slaughter and two shifts of beef processing. After October 16, Pasco will continue to operate one slaughter shift; however, because the plant will no longer be receiving beef carcasses from Boise, it will operate only one processing shift instead of two.
The closing of the Boise plant means the elimination of beef slaughter capacity of 1,600 cattle per day, or approximately 470,000 cattle a year. It also results in the elimination of all 270 jobs at Boise and about 500 positions at Pasco, reducing the total workforce at Pasco to about 1,200 employees. Affected team members will be encouraged to apply for openings at other Tyson locations. The company will offer cash relocation incentives to workers willing to move to select Tyson plants in the Midwest. In addition, the company will work with state workforce development officials who will provide employment assistance.
Much of the production equipment and cooling components will be removed from the Boise plant for use at other Tyson facilities. Company officials expect to explore the sale of the property, which includes approximately 1,500 acres, for possible use by real estate developers. The Boise plant has been part of Tyson Foods since September 2001, when the company acquired IBP, Inc., which had owned the plant since 1976.
According to news reports, the Boise plant closing will leave Idaho with little cattle slaughter capacity. Previous closings included Swift and Company’s Nampa plant a year ago and Simplot Meat Products’ Nampa facility in August 2003. The three closings remove 3,225 head of daily slaughter capacity from the state, yet Idaho reported 225,000 cattle on feed on August 1, 2006, and had a total cattle and calf population of 2.12 million head on January 1, 2006.
Bruce Knight, executive vice president of the Idaho Cattle Association, told an industry news organization that the Boise closing is a significant loss in the infrastructure of the state’s industry. Although several smaller facilities are still open throughout Idaho, most ranchers will have to ship their cattle to larger plants in the Northwest, including Tyson’s Pasco plant. Knight is hopeful Idaho can attract another beef processor to serve the state’s ranchers in the future.
Uniqema Sold
Imperial Chemical Industries (ICI), PLC, has sold its oleochemicals and surfactants business, Uniqema, to Croda International, PLC. The Uniqema business within ICI Pakistan, Ltd., was not part of the transaction.
Uniqema is a leading manufacturer of surfactants, oleochemicals, and related derivatives. The company has manufacturing facilities in 11 countries and is headquartered at Gouda in the Netherlands.
USDA Issues Biotech Report
A report on the future of biotechnology prepared by the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s (USDA’s) Advisory Committee on Biotechnology and 21st Century Agriculture is now available to the public. The 20-member committee was established in 2003 to examine how biotechnology is likely to change agriculture and USDA’s work over the long term.
“Opportunities and Challenges in Agricultural Biotechnology: The Decade Ahead” describes the advances in agricultural biotechnology’s first decade and discusses a range of topics related to agricultural biotechnology that may be addressed by the USDA secretary over the next decade. The report can be accessed through USDA’s biotechnology portal at www.usda.gov.
October 2006 Render