September Veal Blog
PROMOTIONS
Veal has secured a promotion with online retailer, Fresh Direct. The promotion will run from September 10th to September 24th.
Elements of the promotion will include a shopping page featuring veal, branded banner ads running across their website with links to the veal shopping page as well as a dedicated blog post featuring a Checkoff funded veal recipe.
INDUSTRY NEWSLETTER SURVEY
In an effort to improve the Veal Industry Newsletter content and format, we ask that you take a few minutes to complete the survey.
INDUSTRY
Participants Score Veal from Farm to Fork Webinar as Exceptional
An educational webinar, Veal from Farm to Fork, was held in August attracting just over 100 stakeholders in education, government and allied industries related to beef and dairy. The webinar explained the veal industry, how veal is raised today and its interrelationship between the beef and dairy industry industries. Not surprising, participants appreciated the virtual farm tour the most, giving high scores to Wisconsin veal grower Chris Landwehr explaining how veal calves are raised as video played showing a variety of farms and calves. Additional information highly valued by participants was shared by speakers including American Veal Association president, Dale Bakke, animal behavior experts, Dr. Jessica Pempek, The Ohio State University and meat scientist, Dr. Janeal Yancey, University of Arkansas. A follow-up survey showed 86% rated the webinar as exceptional. Confidence in the quality of care veal calves received indicated 43% were confident and 29% were very confident as a result of what they learned through the webinar.
Educational outreach originally planned as part of the 2030 Industry Information program managed by the North American Meat Institute was shifted to a virtual webinar given COVID-19 circumstances. Despite the shift, participants shared that it was an excellent webinar, well organized and super informative.
What topics did you find most valuable to learn more about?
REGULATORY AFFAIRS
USDA Appoints New Members to the Food Safety Advisory Committee.
USDA announced last week the appointment of 10 new members to the National Advisory Committee on Meat and Poultry Inspection (NACMPI) as well as an additional new member to the National Advisory Committee on Microbiological Criteria for Foods (NACMCF). The NACMPI members appointed to serve two-year terms are:
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Dr. Jimmy L. Avery, Mississippi State University
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Mr. William H. Battle, Pride of the Pond and Battle Fish North
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Ms. Tina Conklin, Michigan State University
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Dr. Patricia Ann Curtis, North Carolina State University
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Dr. Jennifer A. Eberly, Maine Department of Agriculture, Conservation and Forestry
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Mrs. Casey Lynn Gallimore, North American Meat Institute
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Dr. Joseph Jay Harris, Southwest Meat Association
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Dr. Curtis Lynn Knipe, Ohio State University
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Dr. Byron Williams, Mississippi State University
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Ms. Sherri L. Williams, JBS USA, LLC
The full list of NACMPI members is available here. The full list of NACMCF members are available here.
AMS Releases Six-Part Series Highlighting Changes Outlined in SOE Proposed Rule.
The Agricultural Marketing Service (AMS) released a six-part series highlighting changes outlined in the Strengthening Organic Enforcement (SOE) proposed rule and explains how the changes apply to the organic community, from farm to table. AMS says the proposed changes will strengthen oversight and enforcement of the production, handling and sale of organic agricultural products, as well as build consumer and industry trust in the USDA organic label. The six-part series helps further explain these proposals by addressing the following issues. Part One: Fewer Exemptions; Part Two: Mandatory Use of NOP Import Certificates; Part Three: Improved Recordkeeping and Fraud Prevention for Certified Organic Farms and Businesses; Part Four: Improved Recordkeeping and Fraud Prevention for Accredited Certifiers; and Part Five: On-Site Inspections, Organic Inspectors and Grower Groups. Part Six will be released this week. Further information, including press releases, fact sheets and side-by-side rule comparisons, is available here.
AMS Issues Notice to Commodity Procurement Program Contractors.
The Agricultural Marketing Service (AMS) sent a notice to Commodity Procurement Program Contractors concerning current and future contracts. In the notice, AMS asks contractors to take the pandemic into consideration when submitting bids. AMS also reminded contractors that many schools are not in session, which may affect the ability for warehouses to take product and may increase requests for shipment delays or diversions to other warehouses. Finally, AMS reminded contractors about the importance of entering an Advanced Shipment Notice (ASN). Contractors are required to enter an ASN in the Web-Based Supply Chain Management System on or before the date of shipment and encouraged to do so when a delivery appointment is scheduled.
SCIENTIFIC AFFAIRS
FSIS Releases New Microbiology Laboratory Guidebook Chapter.
The Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS) released a new chapter of the Microbiology Laboratory Guidebook (MLG). Chapter 42, titled “Whole Genome Sequencing of Bacterial Isolates,” details the protocol FSIS microbiologists have been following internally since 2016 to perform whole genome sequencing (WGS) at agency food testing laboratories. The protocol was developed through collaboration with public health partners and has been fully implemented across the FSIS field service laboratory system. The new user-friendly format includes informational diagrams and graphics that clarify the procedure. Moving forward, FSIS will use this new streamlined format to enhance the readability and information found in both the MLG and Chemistry Laboratory Guidebook chapters as they are developed and revised. MLG 42 will become effective on Sept. 14, 2020. The new chapter can be found here.
MEETINGS, EVENTS AND EDUCATION
Registration Open for Meat Industry Food Safety Conference.
Registration for the Meat Industry Food Safety Conference, which will be a three-day virtual event from Sept. 9 – 11, is now open. This year’s conference will provide valuable insights for the beef, pork and processed meat industries on today’s most critical food safety issues. The virtual conference will bring together top experts from industry and academia to cover such topics as pathogen control, sanitation, foreign material control, responding to regulatory actions, interventions, performance standards, auditing, industry innovation and much more. More information and registration can be found here.
INTERNAL LINKS ARE FUNDED AND MAINTAINED BY THE BEEF CHECKOFF. ALL OTHER OUTGOING LINKS ARE TO WEBSITES MAINTAINED BY THIRD PARTIES.
