04/25/07 Japan Beef Trade & Staying Sharp Longer

Japan Beef Trade & Staying Sharp Longer plus Food Forethought. I'm Greg Martin with today's Northwest Report. The U.S. and Japan are closing the gap on issues regarding beef trade. Ag Secretary Mike Johanns. JOHANNS: The United States and Japan have agreed on two important first steps in our effort to expand U.S. beef trade with Japan. I have approved Japan's request to conduct additional audits of U.S. beef processing plants. I have invited Japan to begin the audits as soon as arrangements can be made. This is part of Japan's verification that our process will provide them with safe beef products. Once the verification process is complete Johanns says Japan will cease inspecting 100% of the beef product shipped from the U.S. It seems that I tend to forget things more often these days but according to a new study just released eating a bit more fish might help. It was found that high blood levels of omega-3 highly unsaturated fatty acids, found in fish oil, may help preserve thinking ability in the elderly. Subjects who ate fish had a slower decline in cognitive function than subjects who did not eat fish. The study was published in the American Journal of Clinical nutrition. Now if I could just remember where I put my keys& Now with today's Food Forethought, here's Susan Allen. The tragedy at Virginia Tech is being exploited by gun control advocates promoting the platform that stringent gun control would stop all mass murderers. It won't! Banning weapons does exactly the opposite; it empowers killers who know they will not meet resistance. The gunman didn't choose to engage in his massacre in one of the 40 states that permit law abiding citizens to carry hand guns. A coward, naturally he didn't take his rage into the inner city to be met by armed foes or into our western communities where many college students keep guns for hunting. No, the killer deliberately selected a campus within a "gun free" zone in Virginia. The outcome of this tragedy could have been vastly different if a professor or student would have been able to obtain a permit to carry a concealed weapon, many lives could have been saved by one shot. Gun control advocates need to be gently reminded that the weapon ban at Virginia Tech did not stop the gunman, but like Daniel Schmutter stated in a recent NYT editorial "it did prevent anyone on that campus from stopping his murder spree." Thanks Susan. That's today's Northwest Report. I'm Greg Martin on the Northwest Ag Information Network.