Alma.alberta.ca

February 5th, 2010
GLOBAL NEWS HEADLINES
• [Argentinean]
President says pork better than Viagra
Meatinternational.com
Argentina - Argentina's president recommended pork as an alternative to Viagra.
Reuters reported that she said she spent a satisfying weekend with her husband after eating barbecued pork. "I've
just been told something I didn't know; that eating pork improves your sex life . I'd say it's a lot nicer to eat a bit of
grilled pork than take Viagra," President Cristina Fernandez told leaders of the pig farming industry.
Talks progressing to restore Canadian pork to China
Meatinternational.com
Canada - Canadian food officials are confident the export of pork to China will resume once issues are
resolved surrounding Chinese requirements for supplementary certification of processing plants.

China banned the import of Canadian pork from Alberta, Manitoba and Quebec in May following the discovery of the
H1N1 virus in an Alberta swine herd.
The ban was officially lifted at the beginning of December, but Canadian pork exports to China remained stalled.
Representatives of the Canadian Food Inspection Agency, Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada and the Department of
Foreign Affairs and International trade have been working closely with their Chinese counterparts to work out the
technicalities to allow trade to resume as soon as possible.
Canadian Government officials are providing the assurances that the Chinese feel are necessary to answer the
questions in terms of ongoing monitoring for the virus to make sure that the situation is under control.
Canadian officials have been proactive in addressing potential issues and, for the most part, the country’s trading
partners have been receptive to that message.

Vilsak: Millions for US Food and Ag Exports
Pigprocess.net
USA - Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack has announced the allocation of $234.5 mil (USD) to 70 US trade
organizations to help promote American food and agricultural products overseas.

The USMEF will be the recipient of $15,679,189 (USD) from the fund, according to FAS website
(http://www.fas.usda.gov/info/factsheets/mapfact.asp)
“In today's highly competitive international markets, we must provide our exporters with the resources they need to
compete overseas during the 21st century,” said Vilsack.
“When you consider the current global financial crisis, increasing production in key competitor countries and
aggressive use of export promotion tools by our competitors, USDA's market development programs are more
important than ever.”
The funding was allocated under the Market Access Program (MAP) and the Foreign Market Development (FMD)
Cooperator Program, both administered by USDA's Foreign Agricultural Service (FAS).
Non-profit activities
The MAP uses funds from USDA's Commodity Credit Corporation (CCC) to share the costs of overseas market
development and promotional activities with US nonprofit agricultural trade organizations, state regional trade groups,
and cooperatives.
Activities conducted with MAP funding include market research, consumer promotions for retail products, technical
capacity building, and seminars to educate overseas customers.
Under the FMD program, USDA's CCC establishes a partnership with non-profit US agricultural trade organizations.
Funding priority is given to organizations that represent an entire industry or are nationwide in membership and
scope.
Program activities focus on reducing market impediments, improving the processing capabilities of importers,
modifying restrictive regulatory codes and standards in foreign markets, and identifying new markets or uses for US
products.
[Argentinean] President Announces Agreement with Pork Industry
thepigsite.com
ARGENTINA - President Cristina Fernández de Kirchner headed an act in which she announced
compensations to boost pork production in the country.

This is also to lead to a reduction in consumer prices. The act took place at Government House, reports Telam.
While presenting the plan, Ms Cristina said that the Government, through the national agricultural exports control
office ONCCA, will subsidise part of the fodder, which would allow that porks cut prices to be cheaper for the general
masses.
"If we are able to diversify the feeding we will have more to export," said the President when stating that diversified
production is the core of the model set up by the Government since 2003.
Besides, she reinforced, there is a need "to continue upholding the production from the State with a strong activity in
infrastructure, agreements and credits."
The event of the act was attended by Agriculture, Livestock and Fishing Minister, Julián Domínguez; and Industry
Minister, Débora Giorgi, as well as representatives of entities related to the pork industry and others.
Canada’s Role in Pork Production to be determined
thepigsite.com

CANADA - A Toronto-based agri-food consultant suggests the availability of land and water will be among
the key factors that will determine Canada's future role in the global pork industry, writes Bruce Cochrane.

"Pig Industry Challenges for the Next 25 Years" will be among the topics discussed next week as part of the 2010
Manitoba Swine Seminar in Winnipeg.
With the exception of China the global pork industry has been shrinking lately as the result of losses fueled primarily
by escalating feed costs.
Ted Bilyea, with Ted Bilyea and Associates, suggests the availability of water and arable land to produce crops will
be among the key factors that will determine Canada's future role in global pork production.
Western Canada is in a position where it has a hog industry that is essentially using the grain that is down-graded by
Mother Nature every year that can't be sold easily into human consumption then the hog is doing its thing it was put
on this earth to do which is to recycle and play that role.
If indeed we are having to import corn or other feed grains to raise hogs and then expect to sell the meat on an export
basis we're kidding ourselves because that mathematics will never work.
If you look at the world there are many places that it doesn't make complete sense to be raising animals that
consume grain because that grain has to be imported and that is a very costly procedure and less than sustainable.
The second one is water and, as you know, animals in the end consume a lot of water through the grain they eat and
just raising them.
Mr Bilyea says, although the Canadian pork industry has had a difficult time recently, it has two key structural
advantages - water and land - and several smaller ones but those advantages have been overwhelmed lately by the
other short term issues.
However he's confident those issues eventually being overcome.

Source: http://alma.alberta.ca/cs/groups/alma/documents/document/mdaw/mdax/~edisp/agucmint-001860.pdf