Stavely (Rural Roots Canada) – Canadian cattle producers are ecstatic that Canada has been declared negligible risk for BSE by the World Organization for Animal Health.

Kaitlynn Bolduc is an owner-operator of Cudlobe Angus near Stavely, Alberta.

She says it is a huge reason for optimism moving forward.

“I think it opens up some trade doors and it just reassures the rest of the world that we’re open for business and we’re committed to safety I mean, Canada has some of the safest standards in all the world as far as meat production goes.”

She adds it’s super exciting that the country has reached that status and they can prove now that it is here to do business now.

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Bolduc says this will mean big things for their customers.

“Our clientele are able to market their calves to a wider range.  It’s just a trickle-down effect the meat is safer, the meat is going to be exported more, which means that the calves, live calves at weaning time, that our clients are selling their more valuable.”

So if they’re more valuable, hopefully, that trickles down and means that our our our product is more valuable as well.

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She says this decision is just reassurance.

“I just think, fellow beef producers and the industry, we all know Canadian beef is safe. We’ve been telling people this for years.”

BSE was found on an Alberta farm in 2003.

BSE at a young age was a scary kind of monster that was hidden under the bed that came out at that time and something that has been haunting us.

Just getting reaching this status just kind of tells the rest of the world what we already knew Canadian beef is safe and we are open for business.’