Beef Exports Double, Helicopter Crash & Mexican Trucks Roll
Beef Exports Double, Helicopter Crash & Mexican Trucks Roll plus Food Forethought. I’m Greg Martin with today’s Northwest Report.
A helicopter pilot was killed Monday in Chelan County when the aircraft hit power lines.
The helicopter was among dozens of others being used to dry cherries after a heavy rain.
Rain can cause cherries to split. The choppers were hired to fly low over the orchards, forcing the water off the trees.
U.S. beef exports to Hong Kong are reaching new heights in 2011. Through the first five months of the year, exports have more than doubled in volume to 50.8 million pounds and increased 140 percent in value to just over $100 million. Joel Haggard, U.S. Meat Export Federation (USMEF) senior vice president
HAGGARD: Hong Kong is a market for us for boneless beef under 30 months, there’s no offal. That’s a constraint to our exports but the economy has been so strong there that we’re seeing what I would call very robust sales.
Mexican trucks will begin shipping long-haul freight far into U.S. territory in a few weeks. Mexico’s Economy Secretary Bruno Ferrari is hopeful that by the end of August or early September the first company can enter with full rights. A pilot program - established in 2007 to allow Mexican trucks greater access - was cancelled two years ago. The Mexican government responded by slapping punitive tariffs on 2.3-billion dollars of U.S. products.
Now with today’s Food Forethought, here’s Lacy Gray.
The challenging of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife 2008 listing of polar bears under the Endangered Species Act continues as scientists decree that polar ice caps are disappearing which in turn is leading to declining numbers of polar bears. What scientists have not been able to determine is the how and why of what they perceive as a greenhouse gases situation affecting polar bears. Farmers, ranchers, and all the rest of us who produce carbon dioxide are being blamed for the plight of the polar bear, but this is based on pure conjecture, not scientific fact. Interestingly not all polar bear populations are down. In nearly half of the polar bear populations being tracked by the agency’s scientists their numbers were up. Yes, I said up. Scientists are not sure why the other populations were declining or making long distance treks, but when in doubt, make it up seems to be the science of choice now days. Perhaps polar bears are just trying to get away from all the “catch and release” they’re being subjected to. What mother wouldn’t go to great lengths to remove her offspring from perceived danger? Hey, if the scientists can guess, so can we.
Thanks Lacy. That’s today’s Northwest Report. I’m Greg Martin on the Ag Information Network.
