Organic Meat Provides Alternative for Meat Eaters Concerned About Mad Cow

From <www.organicts.com>

USA/CANADA: ORGANIC MEAT PROVIDES ALTERNATIVE FOR SHOPPERS ON EDGE ABOUT MAD COW DISEASE

May 21, 2003 Organic Valley Coop

"Organic meat is a true alternative for families concerned about feeding
their children meat that may carry Mad Cow Disease," said Organic Valley
founding Farmer George Siemon. He made his remarks in response to the recent
U.S. ban on the importation of cattle from Canada where Mad Cow Disease has
been found.

"Organic meat is made from animals that have been raised on a pure organic
diet -- nothing but organic feed and pasture. This means they are never fed
rendered animal by-products that could have been contaminated with Mad Cow
Disease," said Siemon, who helped develop the nation's standards for organic
livestock production as the chairperson of the National Organic Standards
Board's livestock committee.

According to the U.S. Food & Drug Administration, Mad Cow Disease (bovine
spongiform encephalopathy or BSE) is a fatal disease that causes progressive
neurological degeneration in cattle. It was first diagnosed in 1986 in Great
Britain, where 95 percent of the cases have occurred, and it is not known to
exist in the U.S. While the source of the disease is not known, it is
believed to be amplified by feeding cattle meat-and-bone meal from
BSE-infected cattle. Evidence indicates that humans may acquire
Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease (CJD), a rare disease similar to BSE, after
consuming BSE-contaminated cattle products. Organic meat is produced
without genetically modified ingredients, antibiotics, hormones in beef
production, pesticides, herbicides, fungicides or synthetic fertilizers. In
addition, animals aren't confined and are provided outdoor access to
pasture.

Organic agriculture is the only production practice that requires third
party certification and an annual on site inspection and audit. This "audit
trail" goes well beyond USDA meat requirements, as does Organic Valley's own
testing program.

Organic standards go beyond the USDA ban on refeeding of ruminant by-
products to ruminants. Organic standards prohibit refeeding of any rendered
animal by-products to any livestock.

Like conventional meat, meat that carries a "natural" label does not have to
meet national standards concerning how the animal or its feed are raised.

"Organic meat is readily available nationwide at most natural foods
supermarkets and cooperative groceries, and it can be ordered on-line as
well," said Michael Levine, General Manager, Organic Meat Division, Organic
Valley. Organic Valley's organic meat was the first USDA approved label with
the claim "fed no rendered animal by-products."

Web: http://www.organicvalley.com