Höhn believes that a positive list for animal feed can avoid such feed scandals

At the weekend, the North Rhine-Westphalia Ministry of Agriculture closed another farm that was presumably purchasing feed contaminated with dioxin. The animals - in all cases these are bull fattening farms - may not be slaughtered for the time being. The farm, which was closed at the weekend, is in the Borken district and purchased liquid potato starch. He was identified following further research by the Dutch Ministry of Agriculture. Twelve slaughter bulls were delivered from the company to Erlangen in Bavaria on November 2nd; The authorities there have been informed and have taken appropriate steps to identify the animals and the slaughter products.

Today, Tuesday, another company was closed as a precaution because it probably purchased feed contaminated with dioxin from the Netherlands. It was determined based on further research by the Dutch Ministry of Agriculture, which has been checking all potato processing companies in the Netherlands to determine the extent to which they use kaolinite clay since the dioxin discovery at a Dutch french fry manufacturer. According to Dutch data reported today through the European rapid alert system, 550 nanograms of dioxin per kilogram were measured in the clay itself and 12 nanograms of dioxin per kilogram in the potato peels.

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In October, the PHW Group (Rechterfeld) took over 50 percent of the shares in Bomadek GmbH in Trzebiechów (Poland). Bomadek is a slaughterhouse and processing plant with 260 employees where turkey meat is processed, packaged and picked. The company's turnover last year was 21,5 million euros. Based on the slaughter volume of 6.000 to 7.000 turkeys per day, Bomadek is number 2 on the Polish market.

Business relationships already existed with the company, which has had EU approval since September 2003 and has access to its own transport fleet, before the investment. The Polish PHW subsidiary Dobrimex purchases turkey meat from Bomadek for sausage production. By investing in Bomadek, the PHW Group would like to strengthen its market position in Poland and achieve synergy effects in its sales activities.

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Fruit and vegetables protect the heart, but not generally against cancer. A team of researchers from the Harvard School of Public Health in Boston report this in the journal “Journal of the National Cancer Institute”. They had tracked the dietary habits and medical histories of around 15 nurses and 72.000 doctors for 38.000 or more years.

The doctors found that consuming five or more portions of fruit and vegetables daily reduces the risk of cardiovascular disease in the long term. Green leafy vegetables and salads are particularly protective of the heart, the authors report.

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A conference proceedings that shows ways to be responsible for food

The lectures given at the GDL conference "Ethical and ethnic aspects in the selection and production of food" in Trier in October 2002 have been published in the form of a conference proceedings. In detail, the volume includes: Jörg Luy and Goetz Hildebrandt: Animal killing - a problem case in Western philosophy for over two millennia; Karen von Holleben and Martin von Wenzlawowicz: Slaughtering and other slaughter methods from the perspective of animal welfare; Hans-Georg Kluge: Legal basis for killing animals, with particular consideration of the current situation regarding slaughter; Osama Badran: The Basics of the ShariÝa; Herbert J. Buckenhüskes and Helmy T. Omran: Muslim dietary laws and the resulting consequences for the selection and production of food; Norbert Schirra: Practical report: Food production in accordance with the HALAL guidelines; Joel Berger: Basics of Slaughtering: The Jewish View; Johannes Reiss: Jewish dietary laws and the resulting consequences for the selection and production of food; Sabine Löhr: The Buddhist teachings and the resulting consequences; Ludger FM van Bergen SJ: Suggestions for preparing food in the Indian home; Dietmar Mieth: Ethical aspects of biotechnical food production; Miltiadis Vanco: Food from the perspective of Orthodox theology.

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German production stable?

This year fewer sheep and lambs will be slaughtered in the EU than in 2003. The main reason for this is developments in Spain and Great Britain. The EU Commission expects production to be quite stable in Germany.

Sheep and lamb meat production in the EU-15 will also decline slightly this year. This will continue a trend that has existed for years. According to an estimate by the EU Commission, the total production of animals for slaughter is likely to be 62,5 million. Although that is only 1,2 percent less than in 2003, in absolute numbers it represents a reduction of more than 730.000 animals.

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Stable household demand for eggs

In recent months, German consumers have been turning to eggs slightly more often than in the same period last year. According to the current market research results from ZMP and CMA based on the GfK household panel, private households also bought 0,9 percent more eggs in September this year than twelve months ago. After the sharp drop at the beginning of the year, when up to seven percent fewer eggs ended up in the shopping basket, the gap to 2003 from January to September is now only half a percent.

This may also be due to the fact that consumers have never been able to buy eggs as cheaply as they have recently. At the end of October, a pack of ten caged eggs cost only 84 cents at the end of October, compared to 1,25 euros in January. And for barn eggs, retailers recently charged 1,55 euros per ten pieces; At the beginning of the year, 1,72 euros had to be paid.

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Experts in the Bundestag committee criticize the draft law

The German Farmers' Association (DBV) has again criticized the draft law for the reorganization of the Food and Feed Act. It is not acceptable if previously independent laws from the areas of food hygiene, animal feed, consumer goods and cosmetics are combined in one set of rules. In a hearing before the Committee for Consumer Protection, Food and Agriculture in the German Bundestag on October 20, the DBV complained that the law was unnecessarily complicated by including a large number of products. The previous draft law was completely unsuitable for application in practice, since only experts in feed and food law would understand the law.

The paragraphs associated with the merger of feed and food law are not transparent and make the work of farmers more difficult due to their lack of clarity. But especially the farmer as a producer of animal feed and also as a food manufacturer is affected in all areas of his daily work by the planned draft law. It is therefore a central concern of the DBV that the newly structured law is implemented in an understandable and clear manner. Experts from other organizations or associations also expressed serious concerns about the applicability of the law. In particular, the numerous references to EU regulations and the large number of statutory powers make it almost impossible to quickly understand the laws in practice.
In view of this clear criticism, the DBV calls on the members of parliament to reject the draft law in its present form. For agriculture in particular, user-friendliness should be given priority when restructuring food and feed law. In addition, a clear orientation towards the EU regulations must be guaranteed. This is the only way that the conditions for comparable regulations and a uniform, understandable legal framework can be met for all economic operators in the European member states.

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Fewer pigs and cattle

The declining trend in cattle and pig production in Slovakia is confirmed by the results of the livestock census from the end of June this year. By the end of the year, Slovakian market experts are expecting a total of 1,28 million pigs, which would be 2003 percent less than in 19. The number of sows is likely to fall by as much as 85.100 percent to 13 head. The decline in pork production in the current year is estimated at eleven to XNUMX percent compared to the previous year.

The number of cattle identified at the end of June was 570.500, which was 6,7 percent less than in 2003. The estimated 14,8 percent increase in the number of slaughter cattle in the second half of 2004 indicates a reduction in stocks. A provisional total cattle population of 557.000 animals is forecast by the end of the year, a drop of a good six percent compared to 2003. Czech cow populations are expected to be 4,4 percent lower. By the end of the year, beef production is expected to be 72.800 tons, which would correspond to an increase of 9,6 percent compared to the previous year.

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Consumer interest is waning

Due to their low age at slaughter, German laying hens are far more suitable for soup than they used to be, but interest in soup chickens is dwindling in this country. Per capita consumption has fallen from 80 kilograms in the early 1,1s to just 800 grams in 2003, and processed products such as chicken stock and canned soup, ready-made fricassee or cat food now account for more than half of the consumption of hen meat. Large stocks of frozen goods regularly build up, especially in summer, which now hope to be sold in the cooler season. But not every shop has soup chickens on offer anymore.

The cliché of the tough, tough soup hen that can hardly be boiled is a thing of the past. In contrast to the past, German egg producers usually only keep their hens for one laying period instead of two. This has the advantage for the consumer that the laying hens, which end up as soup hens after laying eggs, are hardly more than a year old.

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Livestock and Meat

On the market for slaughter cattle, producer prices developed differently in the last week of October: The supply of young bulls was again tight nationwide; the slaughterhouses were primarily looking for good qualities. As a result, prices rose slightly. According to a preliminary overview, the prices for young bulls in the meat trading class R3 increased by two cents to 2,73 euros per kilogram slaughter weight. The supply of slaughter cows was also not urgent, but covered the needs of the buyers well. Producer prices therefore remained at the previous week's level. So cows in the meat trade class O3 continued to bring in 1,98 euros per kilogram. The beef trade was mostly quiet. Forequarters can usually be sold at stable prices. On the other hand, there was less demand for premium cuts such as leg meat, roast beef or filet, for which prices fell. The export of beef to neighboring countries also went smoothly. – The situation at Rindermarkt is unlikely to change much in the coming week. With limited supply, the prices for young bulls are likely to remain stable, while price expectations for slaughter cows vary. – The situation on the market for veal for slaughter remained calm and the prices paid out tended to be stable. Animals billed at a flat rate brought in around 4,20 euros per kilogram, as before. Prices for veal seem to be recovering slowly: on the meat wholesale markets, firmer prices have been achieved, especially for forequarters. – The payment prices for livestock calves were stable or more stable in some regions. The demand matched the supply.

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Consumers who buy ground beef from cattle "raised without antibiotics" are not getting what they expect at a significantly higher price.

A study by the Ohio State University in Columbus shows that there are no differences in the number of foodborne pathogens and antibiotic-resistant germs between "antibiotic-free" and conventionally produced minced meat. dr LeJeune had purchased a total of 1 ground beef samples from retail stores in Ohio, Florida and Washington, DC between January 28 and February 2003, 150. 77 samples came from conventional production, 73 products were marked as "antibiotic-free". According to LeJeune, the results were "incredibly" close. For example, 75,3 percent of conventional and "antibiotic-free" minced meat were contaminated with coliform bacteria. 32,5 percent of the conventional and 31,5 percent of the "antibiotic-free" samples showed coliform bacteria. Even when the samples were cultivated in a nutrient medium in the laboratory, there were no differences. Salmonella or vancomycin-resistant enterococci were not detected in any sample.

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