MAD COW: USDA BUMBLES ON

It's almost impossible to keep track of all the elements of the USDA's screwed-up Mad Cow strategy, though the federal investigations do help. The latest is into "allegations an agency supervisor in Texas violated federal policy and ordered that a suspect cow not be tested for mad cow disease." In his ongoing quest to rake the Mad Cow muck, Steve Mitchell also finds that at that same Texas facility, the USDA did not test any cows for mad cow disease in the past seven months. "The USDA also failed to test a single cow in 2002 at another Texas slaughterhouse that processes high-risk, downer cows." And this is getting to be a common refrain: "A woman at [the other slaughterhouse,] San Angelo Packing, who refused to identify herself, declined to comment, saying the president of the company, whom she also would not identify, was out of town."

Lack of information seems to be the main concept here, applied as liberally as the meatpackers and their lobbyists can get away with. In addition to the above stonewalling, the USDA "has failed to supply the number of cows exhibiting signs of a brain disorder it has tested for mad cow disease to Japanese authorities, who requested the information more than four months ago." Mitchell continues, quoting a Japanes official, that "the USDA has also failed to address other questions about how the agency is ensuring mad cow disease does not infect U.S. herds." Despite our attempts to bamboozle the Japanese into accepting our risky meat, this official saw the problem pretty clearly: "For some reason, this government can't do anything the big meat industry (opposes)," he said.

And as Ann Veneman's resignation is demanded over the department's breaking of its own rules in secretly importing Canadian beef, what's her rebuttal? "I didn't know." Come on, how's she supposed to keep track of every little life- and economy-threatening issue that's the biggest story her agency has faced in decades? Really, now. When "who knows?" is your organization's basic operating principle, you gotta expect a couple oddball developments here and there.

And speaking of developments, that's the trouble. BSE could still be developing in our herds as well as in our population. In our herds because the FDA is still doesn't have Mad Cow feed rules announced, much less in place and enforced, and can't even say when this will happen. So any feed that's "at risk" is still getting fed to cows right now, with potential consequences several years down the road. And according to British scientists, BSE is still developing in the human population, with up to 4,000 people over there unwittingly carrying it. (But none here, of course, since we have a Firewall against Mad Cow.) The concern is that these folks, even if they don't get Mad Cow symptoms, could still pose a risk to others as blood donors "or if they had an operation which involved instruments contacting infected tissue." It's being called a Mad Cow Time Bomb. But when it comes to the USDA, the key word is: Dud.

UPDATE 5/24: Veneman lied about not knowing, says Cattlemen's group, adding "there were numerous indications Veneman would have been aware" of the millions of pounds meat illegally crossing the border. The Seattle Post-Intelligencer puts it bluntly: "Don't trust USDA about mad cow." And the Wilmington Star-News both states outright that Veneman is a liar and accuses her of cronyism and profiteering.
ALSO: Mad Cow-type prions are discovered in sheep muscle, but don't worry, if sheep have Mad Cow, "it probably would be in very small amounts." And we all know it takes a huge amount of that stuff to infect anybody.

DETROIT ZOO FREES ITS ELEPHANTS

This is a biggie: The Detroit Zoo will become the nation's first major animal facility to give away its elephants solely on ethical grounds. Apparently the director, Ron Kagan, is an old softie who has spoken out against sport hunting, sent a zoo expert to testify against a circus using polar bears in Puerto Rico and pissed off other animal-abuse lovers from time to time. He spells out what this means: "If we don't feel like we can (keep elephants), then the question is, who can and how?," he said. "For us, there really is a big question about whether elephants should be in captivity at all." Yes, there is, as there are about other animals. But even there he leaves the window open: "In the future, there may very well be more species that we'll look back and say, 'We just didn't understand.'" What's noteworthy is that while this is one (large) zoo, even the director of the American Zoo and Aquarium Association admits "We're seeing an evolution in elephant management." Kagan sums up this milestone pretty well:
"I wouldn't expect the American public - which has been told for 100 years it's OK to have elephants in captivity - to say 'Oh, OK, we understand' right away. But we have an educational mission. The zoo is the window into our humanity, and how we treat other things in nature."

NYT FOOD COLUMNIST PREACHES VEGETARIANISM

Even though Mark Bittman isn't a vegetarian himself, he does a good job making the case in this column: "Thirty years ago vegetarian food in America meant either brown rice and vegetables stir-fried until lifeless or something cooked in the style of the original Moosewood Cookbook - heavily laden with cheese and cream. Now vegetarian food draws from the traditions of the entire world, traditions that, in the form of ingredients, spices and cooking tools, are now available to everyone, at least those with access to good supermarkets or the Internet." Note that "cheese and cream" part. There are seven recipes accompanying the piece, only one of which is not vegan: Rice and Cheese.

LOW-CARB MIRACLE FIZZLES

Another week, another good-news-bad-news story on Atkins. Some papers, again, cast it (ludicrously) as a "vindication" story, while others see it as another "where's the big results?" story. Two studies just came out: Basically they both found that low-carbers who had lost weight dramatically after six months had gained a good bit of it back by the end of a year, while "moderate-fat" dieters (nothing near vegan, of course) continued to slowly lose weight. In the MSN version, Dr. Glenn Gasser of the University of Virginia predicts this longer-term research is the beginning of the end of the Atkins fad. "My guess is that, in a few years, people will look at themselves in the mirror and they won't see much difference in this low-carb diet they've been on for a number of years, and will go on to something else." Similarly, "I don't care that low-carb diets produce short-term weight loss; all diets do," said a Yale nutrition specialist, Dr. David L. Katz. "When you go out a year, the weight loss benefits disappear." Even the lead author of the study said "if it's not effective at a year, it negates what happens at six months." And Walter Willet, who's often dragged in to "endorse" Atkins in these stories, notes that "Patients should focus on finding ways to eat that they can maintain indefinitely rather than seeking diets that promote rapid weight loss."

Of course the Atkins group reported more side effects such as constipation and headaches, but PCRM brings us the most alarming news hidden in the studies - that two participants on the low-carb diet died in the course of the study. Whether there's a causal connection isn't proven, but it may be irrelevant: Now not just orange growers and bread makers but "industry insiders" say the low-carb boom has peaked. "Sales of low-carb products have fallen sharply at independent and health food stores, and some longtime industry insiders say a shakeout has begun. Even as they rush to cash in on the craze, some major food manufacturers say they see the phenomenon cooling down and becoming one part of the broad market for weight-loss products." Just another part of the broad market? Atkins must be sloshing around in his grave.

WHY DOES THE MEAT INDUSTRY HATE AMERICA?

Public comment on the USDA's ban on allowing "downer" cattle into the food supply is running 10 to 1 in favor of the restriction, while cattle groups and some U.S. states are pushing to weaken the ban on the consumption of downers. Any doubts now on the disconnect between the meat industry and the public interest?

SUPER FOODS ARE VEGAN FOODS

Here are the "Super Foods" everybody should eat more of, according to nutrition experts in the Chicago Tribune: Avocados, blueberries, Brazil nuts, broccoli, butternut squash, edamame, flaxseed, kale, kiwifruit, lentils, onions, quinoa, sardines, tomatoes and yogurt. And here are the Runners-Up: Apples, Asparagus, Bananas, Beans, Beets (and beet greens), Cantaloupe, Carrots, Cranberries, Garlic, Grapes, Nuts, Mushrooms (shiitake, enoki), Oats and oatmeal, Olives and olive oil, Oranges and orange juice, Pears, Peppers (bell and chili), Pomegranates, Spinach, Strawberries, Sweet potatoes, Tea (white, green, oolong and black).

So out of 25 foods everyone needs more of, there are exactly 2 non-vegan items, one of which has an exact soy equivalent, the other of which - well, how can I put this gently - is just this side of absurd.

FLEXITARIAN NATION?

I don't think I even posted that original "Flexitarian" article from a few months back that had people all atwitter, but I did want to point out this estimate: "Flexitarians [people who usually or often, but not always, eat vegetarian] could be as high as 40 percent of the U.S. population, according to Charles Stahler, co-director of the Vegetarian Resource Group." Now, of course Stahler has good reason to want to see the proportion that high, but it wouldn't surprise me. The grocery store trends are showing it - grocers aren't trying to stock meatless and dairyless items for vegans, but for the growing number of people who want them some of the time. And however you slice it, that's a good thing.

MAD COW INSIDER TRADING: THIS TIME IT'S CRIMINAL

A civil probe was already underway by the Commodity Futures Trading Commission, but now federal prosecutors are looking into possible criminal violations by commodities traders who may have received advance knowledge about the first U.S. case of mad cow disease and used it to reap profits in the cattle futures market. The disclosure of an investigation by criminal authorities was made today in testimony before the Senate Agriculture Committee.

Dunno how any insider trading could be possible here - after all, the USDA would've been the first to know if the test was positive, and they wouldn't have wasted one minute to let people know about this - wouldn't have allowed cronies to profit while they scheduled the release of potentially life-saving information for Christmas Eve, would they? Nah.

NEWS FLASH: HIGH-PROTEIN DIETS CAUSE BAD BREATH

OK, so this is not news to anyone who's been paying attention, but now a whole bunch of people are paying attention to the fact that Atkins and its low-carb ilk will give you bad breath. Doesn't mention whether your breath improves once you gain the pounds back.

WONDER WHAT SMARTY JONES THINKS?

A professional trainer speaks out in USA Today: "As a person who works with horses and sees the humanity that these animals possess and their importance to the history of this country, I am deeply troubled that thousands of them are being led to the slaughterhouse. I suspect Americans who cheer on race day, have seen their giggling children ride horseback and have an appreciation for the days of the Pony Express, will understand my outrage."

VENEMAN: MORE U.S. MAD COW LIKELY

While one arm of the government reaffirms the trope that nobody could get Mad Cow in the U.S., more disturbing signs emerge from other branches:

Ann Veneman is casually softening us up for the next Mad Cow "discovery," saying the USDA "won't be surprised" if it turns up additional infected animals. "There is certainly a likelihood we will find more (diseased) cows," Veneman said Friday. And on the same day, the FDA announced it has "not yet finalized long-awaited rules to prohibit cattle blood and poultry litter from U.S. cattle feed as a precaution against mad cow disease. Remember, these are the rules that were supposed to be "published swiftly" in January so they could be implemented immediately.

Meanwhile, that Texas No-Test Downer case gets more and more suspicious: "The vet condemned the animal as unfit for human consumption and recommended to a regional director with the USDA's Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service in Austin that samples from the cow's brain be tested, Burley Smith, vice president of Lone Star Beef, said.  But the regional director told the vet not to test the cow, Smith said. Instead, it was taken a rendering plant where the Food and Drug Administration, which regulates rendering plants, approved it for use in swine feed." Steve Mitchell, as always, has much more: In addition to the departmental infighting reported in the above story, there was a May 6 e-mail order from the USDA "instructing its inspectors in Texas, where federal mad cow disease testing policies recently were violated, not to talk about the cattle disorder with outside parties." The USDA is facing possible legal action from the national inspectors union, which considers this a violation of inspectors' free speech rights and a breach of their labor agreement with the agency. Additionally, "Stanley Painter, chairman of the National Joint Council, said the USDA has sent out notices in the past stating inspectors cannot talk to reporters. 'It's an intimidation thing,' Painter told UPI." As always, spokesman Steve Cohen is on hand to be "not familiar with" whatever national-crisis document is being discussed on a given week.

Even the New York Times has started to remark on the man-behind-the-curtain stuff: "The federal Department of Agriculture is making it hard for anyone to feel confident that the nation is adequately protected against mad cow disease. At a time when the department should be bending over backward to reassure consumers, it keeps taking actions that suggest more concern with protecting the financial interests of the beef industry than with protecting public health." Well, yeah. That's why they keep reminding us that the 200,000-cow test plan is a "surveillance, not a food safety" plan.

MORE BAD McOMENS

"The president of the Japanese unit of McDonald's resigned Wednesday following recent moves by the U.S. fast-food chain to reshape its leadership to turn around the struggling business here." Oh....kay, but how come this? "A replacement has not yet been chosen for Yasuyuki Yagi, a 30-year employee of McDonald's who also stepped down as chief operating officer, the Tokyo-based company said." I'm puzzlin' it.

FIVE-DOLLAR MILK

In Charleston, S.C. the cost of a gallon of milk is well over five dollars for "high-end brands," and prices for some brands have gone up by 50 cents a gallon in the last month.

"I better slow down on drinking milk," said Connie Hare, as she noticed the price for a gallon.

CLIPPING BEAKS, STARVING HENS NOT HUMANE?

"The egg industry should stop advertising its products as humane as long as it continues such practices as clipping hens' beaks and depriving birds of food and water, according to a ruling issued Monday by the Better Business Bureau. The ruling comes from the bureau's New York-based National Advertising Review Board, its highest authority on advertising issues. The board recommended that the United Egg Producers either discontinue labeling eggs as "animal care certified," or significantly alter it to stop misleading consumers. 'It is unimaginable that consumers would consider treatment they find 'unacceptable' to be humane treatment,' the ruling stated." Props to Compassion Over Killing, the folks behind this effort.

I LUNCH N.Y.

"If state lawmakers have their way," the New York Daily News warns, "vegetarian dishes like meatless meatloaf could replace baloney sandwiches on the school lunch menu." But the interesting item is this: "But salt-craving, French fry-happy children might not bite, according to food expert Antonio Demas. 'Even if they put out the most nutritious food in the world, the kids aren't going to touch them unless they understand the effect that food has on their body,' Demas said." First, I really doubt Mr. Demas was saying it wasn't worth putting out vegetarian food - I'd like to see the full context of that quote. Second, I wonder if Mr. Demas has a twin sister

SF ZOO, COLE BROS. CIRCUS GO ELEPHANT-FREE

"The San Francisco Zoo has decided to permanently close its pachyderm exhibit amid criticism over the deaths of two of its four elephants." Meanwhile, "Faced with dwindling audiences, sliding profits and increased pressure from animal rights organizations, traveling circuses, including Cole Brothers, New York's Big Apple Circus and Missouri's Circus Flora, have sent their elephants into early retirement - canning one of the most costly acts for such shows to maintain. 'In the next 10 years, we think even zoos may no longer have elephants,' said Bob Johnson, president and chief executive officer of the Outdoor Amusement Business Association, which represents more than 4,000 circuses, carnivals and other acts in the United States and Canada." Both of these developments are welcome, even if they're largely bottom-line driven: Caging and maintaining elephants invites all kinds of extra expense and liability. As the Baltimore Sun points out, "Cole Brothers' elephants became even more of a financial burden last year, after the U.S. Department of Agriculture slapped the circus with a $2,750 fine when a trainer hit one of the pachyderms with a broom."

BEEF PACKERS MAY BE SENT TO JAIL

...but not for the reason they should - persistent animal cruelty and depravation of life. Rather, "executives at three major beef-packing companies could face jail if they don't provide financial statements by Monday to a federal committee looking into whether the industry profited from the mad cow crisis." Profit? Ya think?

I'M LOVIN' IT DYIN' FROM IT

Charlie Bell, 43, who became CEO of McDonald's two-and-a-half weeks ago when his predecessor collapsed and died of a sudden heart attack, has colon cancer, the company admitted today, and just underwent surgery for it. This comes on the same day that Slate's David Edelstein delivered a ringing endorsement of Super Size Me, which chronicles the amazingly unhealthy effects of a McDonald's diet. Edelstein's only quibble: "I don't think anyone should sue McDonald's. Just stop buying its food." OK, but why not... both?

CWD MORE DANGEROUS THAN THOUGHT

"A new study shows chronic wasting disease can spread through environmental contamination and not just animal-to-animal contact, a finding that could change the way experts fight the ailment. The study, published in the online edition of the journal Emerging Infectious Diseases, also suggests that chronic wasting outbreaks could last longer than previous models projected." Huh. Wonder if this will make people pay any more attention to "alarmists" like Stauber and Greger. I won't hold my breath.

MAMAS, DON'T LET YOUR BABIES GROW UP

Heidi Prescott puts it best: "We have minimum ages for driving, voting, and drinking because we recognize that children don't have the emotional maturity to engage in those activities safely. Why should we think that children are able to make split-second decisions about firing a long-range, high-powered rifle under circumstances that have their adrenaline pumping? It's insane."

13-year-old Michael Lynn Russell was killed by a gunshot wound to the back of the head late last month. "We still don't know what happened. It was an accident," said his mother of Michael's tragic bird hunting trip with an 11-year-old cousin at a ranch in Texas.