35 vans of tainted meat to be sent back

The Bureau of Customs assured the public yesterday that all the 35 container vans holding thousands of kilos of beef from Europe will be shipped back by March 13.

Customs Commissioner Titus Villanueva made the assurance as Cabinet members feasted on native beef dishes at the Department of Agriculture (DA) in front of journalists to assure the public that local beef products remain free of the deadly "mad cow" disease.

The Cabinet members, led by Agriculture Secretary Leonardo Montemayor and Health Secretary Manuel Dayrit, conducted the beef-eating session to ease fears that local beef products are tainted with the disease.

The mad cow scare was sparked by the seizure of several tons of beef from Europe despite a government ban imposed in November.

Villanueva, who also joined the beef-eating session, said the bureau had already shipped out 19 of the 35 container vans which were confiscated in the ports of Manila and Cebu.

"The one container van in Cebu is scheduled for transport back to the country of its origin either today or next week," Villanueva said. adding that at least 15 container vans are now being processed for re-shipment.

"We are conducting a close monitoring in all possible ports of entry in the country to assure that no mad-cow contaminated beef will find its way into the local market," Villanueva said.

The mad cow scare has caused beef prices to plummet and is estimated to have affected the cattle industry by as much as 50 to 60 percent, according to Martin Gomez, president of the Cattle Feedlot Association of the Philippines.

Gomez said that because of these losses, at least 30 percent of employees in the cattle industry have been affected.

He warned that unless drastic measures are made to remove the fear that beef being sold in the market is unsafe, "the industry will die."

The country’s top agriculture and health officials thus led yesterday’s beef-eating session to help restore confidence in local beef products. Montemayor, Dayrit and Villanueva plus Press Secretary Noel Cabrera led the beef fest yesterday afternoon and ate bulalo, mechado and caldereta courtesy of a Batangas stock farm.

Officers of the Cattle Raisers Association of the Philippines and the Meat Processors Association of the Philippines and other DA employees also joined the beef binge.

"There’s absolutely no reason to overreact to the mad cow disease scare by nor eating beef or animal meat at all," Montemayor said. "Or worse yet, by depriving your children the nutrition that milk and other dairy products offer."

The Cabinet officials stressed that the Philippines remains free of the mad cow disease and that the government would do all in its power to prevent the disease from reaching Philippine shores.