BEEF PACKERS BLOCK PLAN TO REVIVE GROWTH-PROMOTING DRUG … HORSE OWNER BATTLES FOR RETURN OF SEIZED ANIMALS … CNGF TRACEABILITY COMMITTEE ADDRESSING KEY ISSUES … NEW BRUNSWICK LIVESTOCK EXPO … OTHER NEWS OF INTEREST...

BEEF PACKERS BLOCK PLAN TO REVIVE GROWTH-PROMOTING DRUG
Source: NPR
For more than a year, a once-popular drug that makes cattle put on weight faster has been stuck in a kind of veterinary purgatory. As far as the Food and Drug Administration is concerned, the drug, Zilmax, is legal to use. But large meat packers, which dominate the industry, have ostracized it after the drug was accused of making animals suffer. The drug’s manufacturer, Merck, has been working on a plan to rehabilitate it. But that effort has stalled. (read more)

HORSE OWNER BATTLES FOR RETURN OF SEIZED ANIMALS
Source: CBC.ca
The owner of a herd of horses seized by the P.E.I. government has begun a legal battle to get them back. The herd of 41 horses was seized in November and December from the Byrnes Road near Morell under the province’s animal health and protection act. Documents filed in P.E.I. Supreme Court by owner Tawni Frank and her husband, George Smith, challenge the province and its legislation on constitutional grounds. (read more)

CNGF TRACEABILITY COMMITTEE ADDRESSING KEY ISSUES
Source: CNGF The Canadian National Goat Federation (CNGF) Traceability Committee met by teleconference on December 22, 2014 with Eric Aubin from the Canadian Food Inspection Agency (CFIA) and David Cox from Agriculture and Agri-food Canada (AAFC). CFIA indicated there will be a single national database for traceability (CATS) probably operating by early 2016 and that premise identification will become mandatory across the country. (read more)

NEW BRUNSWICK LIVESTOCK EXPO
Source: N.B. Livestock Expo
The second annual N.B. Livestock Expo will take place Feb.21, 2015 at the Fredericton Exhibition Grounds, with educational booths from both farmers and farm related support businesses, educational seminars every half hour on a different type of livestock and basic husbandry skills, hands on demonstrations, many breeders with animals on display to highlight their breed of choice, petting zoo, kids fun area, and lots more! The N.B. Livestock Expo was created with four main goals in mind: Create public awareness of the agriculture industry and reconnect them to where their food comes from; Encourage/offer resources to individuals looking to get into farming for the first time or expand their operation; Provide networking opportunities for established farmers; Highlight the importance of preserving heritage breeds of livestock for future generations. (read more)