8 month weaning ages....

[aggie]

A new group is emerging on the landscape that we should all be aware of...Global Animal Partnership....unlike GAP stores which sell clothing - - this GAP is dedicated to telling producers how to farm in order to meet their needs - and hence their customers needs.

Interestingly - there appears to be some PETA connections in the organization, but then there are also a number of representatives from some leading value added beef production chains.

While some 'requirements' of the system are reasonable and rational - I find some to be unusual and unworkable - ie Step 10.2.2 - slaughter must occur on ranch/farm or a location the animals can easily and safely reach by walking'

This cannot result in a better food system for the consumer...

Please take a look at the link with the pronounced GAP standards...
http://globalanimalpartnership.org/uploads/gap_5step_cattle_standards.pdf

What can be done to help influence this direction..

[grassfarmer]

Thanks Aggie that was interesting. The link didn't work for me - try this one if you are having trouble.
http://globalanimalpartnership.org/uploads/GAP_5Step_Cattle_Standards.pdf
There are lots of things I would agree with in their production protocol and some I wouldn't.
The walking to slaughter plant point you mention only applies to the 5 standard the highest of their 3 protocols. With the lesser ones it appears you can truck them up to 25 hours. One rather sweeping rule is no livestock auction barns - to sell or buy at. Another lesser one which annoys me concerns disbudding calves with a hot iron - only acceptable with anesthetic. This was the rule in Europe too and I never agreed (or complied) with it. You need to inject anesthetic into the vein right beside the eye and then wait for it to take effect. With a boistrous beef calf at 2 months old the difficulty and stress of restraining a calf for this operation and then capturing him again to actually burn the horns exceeds the stress of just catching and burning in my opinion.I can have them caught, burned and released in less than a minute without anesthetic.
Overall I don't see this program as a big threat - join if you want and I'm sure many will as this will certainly drive some consumer spending decisions.

[RShields]

i don't understand how you can say this can't result in a better food system for the consumer. Have you been buying any over the counter beef or ordering it at your average eatery?
I think it's an indisputable fact that beef consumption declines steadily because the price for quality is also declining. That is not the fault of the person raising the calves, as we all eat our own and know better.
What do they do to it to make it turn into near inedible crap??? Where does the good stuff go?

[aggie]

Thanks - my concerns are around the fact that while this is positioned as a 5 Step program - it also seems to be suggesting that Step 5 is a 'better' product, or more enlightened product than a Step 3 or Step 2 based product.

My quality concern is primarily with taking the current food system to a locally - on farm slaughter system. That type of system cannot economically support the same oversight controls as a more centralized system can.

There will undoubtedly be very many good quality operations, but there will also be more lower quality aswell. This disparity will not support overall food safety, food quality or consumer confidence.

While I agree that some venues have less than ideal tasting beef - we do have a solid safe system right now.

[RShields]

Are you posting from NB head office? You sure sound like your main concern is status quo, and that ain't working for anybody down here among the surfs.

[grassfarmer]

Where does the inedible tasting crap beef come from? How about the rotting in the bag system of aging. Start having small local plants in every town again that will dry age their product and you would cure most of the quality problems. Better beef, better for producers, better for the rural economy.

[kato]

Exactly. People just don't know how good it can be if they've never had the good stuff.