The United States will resume imports of blood meal from Canadian cattle for the first time in eight years, a senior Canadian government source said Tuesday.
Trade in bovine blood meal, which is used in fertilizers and animal feeds, will be worth about $4 million per year to the Canadian beef industry, the source said.
Many importing countries banned Canadian beef and other cattle products after the discovery of bovine spongiform encephalopathy (BSE) in an Alberta cow in 2003.
Most countries have since lifted those restrictions.
Bovine blood does not pose a risk for BSE, the source said, but it must be collected properly to prevent contamination with parts of the cattle (called specified risk materials) that can carry the disease.
Canadian and U.S. food regulation authorities agreed on a collection method that meets U.S. regulations, the source said.
Canada’s Agriculture Minister Gerry Ritz was expected to announce the new market access in Ottawa late Tuesday.
