European Stars And Stripes (Newspaper) - February 27, 1989, Darmstadt, Hesse Page-10 the stars and stripes monday february 27,1989 questions on american beef answered we followed with interest the recent debates and the investigation of the european authorities in the Pursuit of members of the hormone it seems that some dutch drug producers peddled their hormones to european cattle breeders which managed to get More veal for the Buck but which rendered the meat unfit for human consumption. The local to showed thou Sands of drugged beef cattle being slaughtered by government agents wearing rubber gloves. Some of the hormone mafioso Are already behind bars and considerable fines were passed out. Now the europeans have embarked upon a Trade War against the United states they do not permit the import of hormone enriched beef to the european Market. To weaken the . Accusations of an impending Trade War the spokesman of the common Market countries agreed to some meat imports to be used for dog and other pet foods. Again a vigorous protest from our Side against such discriminatory actions. This tug of War raises a few questions 1. Do the . Commissaries buy and sell meat for consumption by the . Community which the euro peans might Call class b dog food 2. Is there any medical evidence proving that Hor Mones arc detrimental to your health or Are these europeans As hysterical As they were during the Cher Nobyl incident 3. Is there any Good reason for the jailing of euro Pean cattle raisers for something that our ranchers and cattle salesmen get a Pat on the Back for i.e., get More meat for the Buck 4. Is our Grade a beef really Only fit for european dog food this subject did create quite a bit of consternation in our discussion group but no one is Ever qualified enough to speak with sufficient authority. Can your experts shed Light on this growing controversy . Poser Giessen West Germany editor s note it. Col. Robert Mccaskill veterinary services he 7th medical come replies your questions concerning recent International events associated with the use of growth stimulants or Hor Mones in cattle Are More complicated than they appear on the surface. First some background on hormones and their use. Growth promoting drugs Are used by beef producers in the United states to increase the rate of gain of animals by having an anabolic effect on the Normal physiological state of the animals. Animals treated with these growth promoters normally gain weight faster and require less feed than animals not receiving these drugs. The end result is a beef animal of higher Quality available sooner to the consumer at a cheaper Price. In the United states there Are five hormone drugs approved by the . Department of health and human service s food and drug administration Fra for use As growth promoters. Three of these drugs Are natural hormones and two Are synthetic. All Are implanted by a special apparatus under the skin of the ear which re leases microscopic amounts of the hormone into the animal s blood Stream. The ears Are not processed for food purposes and Are discarded at Slaughter. The . Department of agriculture us a closely monitors the . Beef Industry to ensure Only authorized growth stimulants Are used in the proper amounts. Thus use of these approved drugs does not pose any health threat to the consumer. This contrasts with the european economic Community dec nations which prohibit by Law any use of growth stimulants in livestock. Their insistence apparently stems from discovery of several instances of Gross misuse of drugs by animal producers in several euro Pean countries. A directive that bans imports of meats from any country that fails to certify that drugs have not been used to promote growth was implemented by dec member nations on Jan. 1,1989. Concurrently the majority of International scientific groups agree that the controlled use of the approved drugs by the United states presents no health threat to the consumer. A few of the dec members however feel that the consumer has the right to insist that no growth stimulants of any Type should be used in meat production. This had been the basis for the current ban being imposed on . Beef imports for commercial Sale on the european Market. With this background in mind i will attempt to answer your specific questions. The United states purchases from european sources Over 41.7 million pounds of fresh beef per year for its military forces. Fresh beef is purchased by specification which describes the exact Quality and process ing procedures. The specification for european fresh beef allows for military Grade c or better. Military Grade b and c correspond to us a Choice and select respectively and it is the Standard that the department of defense uses for meat purchases throughout the world where us a products Are not available. When thinking about the difference in grades of beef you have to remember that the production of beef differs in most european countries As compared with the United states. These differences Are based on land size and the animal s Breed. In the United states our animals Are raised on open Range land for 14-16 months then Are taken to feed lots where they Are Given Corn and soybean meal for about 120 Days preceding Slaughter. We can do this because we have the open ranges. In Europe there is less available land and the Pri Mary Breed of animal is a combination or Utility Ani Mal such As the Brown Swiss. These Utility animals Are used to produce milk for the Many european Dairy products we enjoy and Are used As a source of meat. Unfortunately the problem with Utility Breeds is that the meat Quality is not As High As that from animals bred specifically for their meat. When the contractor buys animals for our military procurement he buys live animals that could have easily been bought for one of the Large supermarkets or the Small Butcher shops. These animals Are then slaughtered under the supervision of the Host country veterinarians graded by . Army veterinary service sol Diers and further inspected for wholesomeness and Quality during the processing and shipment of the car casses to the commissary. At the commissary the shipment is further inspected by veterinary personnel to ensure that the appropriate specification and wholesomeness requirements Are met at the time of delivery. The Bottom line is that the beef bought for . Forces commissaries is similar to that available in the Host country. The difference is that the meat is Pur chased under . Specification and veterinary medical inspection to ensure Quality and wholesomeness for the military consumer. Concerning medical evidence providing that Hor Mones Are detrimental to your health requires a two part answer. Hormones that Are approved based on scientific study and that Are monitored by our regulatory agencies involve no health risk. However if growth promoters Are used in an illegal Black Market fashion with no regulatory controls health problems May occur if significant amounts of these compounds Are consumed Over a period of time. For instance Des is classified As a known Carcinogen and is internationally banned for use in meat and milk producing animals. Should this drug have been found in . Meats by us a inspectors they would initiate an immediate recall and investigation to find All the associated adulterated meat for immediate condemnation. This and other compounds could have possible health effects especially in Young children before and during puberty if they Are routinely consumed in meat products that contained these illegal drugs. Occasional consumption of products with slightly higher residues is unlikely to result in Adverse health effects. It appears that the use of unregulated unapproved substances currently identified As being used by Farmers in the different european countries could be sufficient reason for the euro peans to be concerned. European cattle raisers do not have Legal Means to improve beef production and Quality by the use of approved and control hormones. This occasionally has resulted in misuse of hormones and use of potentially dangerous drugs. Until the dec import ban was implemented the United states exported about 1 million metric tons of meat products to the dec. According to sources in the . Mission to the dec about 10,000 pounds were High value meats that were primal cuts of beef supplied to restaurants and hotels. Another 20,000 pounds were meat scraps and by products used in the processing of european animal foods. The remainder consists of Organ meats such As livers and hearts used for processed meats such As Pate and Bologna. Therefore some . Meats came to Europe to be processed into animal food but these meats were by products and not Grade a Pri Mal cuts. I Hope i have satisfactorily answered your questions. The . Army veterinary service considers our food inspection support to our sailors soldiers airmen and their families to be one of our most important missions. We Are proud of our 80 years of involvement in Public health and meat Hygiene in ensuring that Only whole some Quality foods Are offered at our galleys dining facilities and family tables. Explanation Given on commissary prices i recently moved to the Community of Schwabish a mind and quite frankly i was somewhat taken Aback by the differences in prices in the commissary up to a 50 percent difference in some of the items that 1 had purchased. A gallon of Crisco liquid shortening was priced at $5.95 compared with the same thing in the Stuttgart commissary at $2.95. Frozen fruit pies Are almost $2 cheaper there As Well. What i can t understand is Why we must pay these higher prices. I feel that the Community of Schwabish a mind is being penalized for some reason or another. I even hear the baggers say that the food items Are so much cheaper in the Stuttgart commissary. It makes you wonder who is pricing the food items that the families must Purchase. I realize that one can take a bus or the train to the Stuttgart commissary but How does a family transport All of the purchases from Stutt Gart Home maybe that family has t received their car from stateside yet what then i thought that All items were to be within the same Price Range no matter on what Post you were stationed. Whom do we seek out to have these questions an swered How do we get a reply to our questions name withheld Schwabish Amund West Germany editor s note col. Paul w. Phillips com Mander . Army troop support Agency european commissary Region replies we appreciate the Opportunity to address your con Cerns about pricing As this is an area that Many of our customers ask about. All items sold in the commissary Are sold at Cost but prices do change and May vary from commissary to commissary for several reasons. All items Are priced by lot which Means customers pay the most recent delivery Price. When merchandise is received at a commissary warehouse the Price of any of the same merchandise still in the warehouse and on the commissary shelves is adjusted to reflect the Price of the newly received merchandise. Prices May increase or decrease so that no More than and no less than the amount of Money needed to replace the merchandise is recouped. This is important since the commissary system is obligated to replace the exact amount of Stock fund monies used to Purchase Mer Chandise for resale and May not make a profit. The Price of merchandise however May be reduced through several methods. A Vendor May choose to pro vide a voluntary Price reduction apr in order to stimulate sales. These prs Are offered throughout the Tsa european commissary Region in All commissaries that carry the product. A Vendor May also reduce the Price of merchandise in a particular commissary in order to move excess Quanti ties of an or an that is close to its expiration Date. If there is already a apr on the the Price reduction on that is multiplied making the Price much lower than it is in other commissaries. If there is no other apr on the it still will be substantially lower than the Price in other commissaries. Although you did not name the commissary in Stutt Gart that you were referring to Price reductions due to excesses were offered on a number of items in two of our commissaries there which would account for Many of the Price differences you found. We compared the prices of nine products including Brand name shortenings oils and Frozen pies in the Schwabish Amund commissary and three others. Prices in the Schwabish a mind commissary ranged from 13.1 percent below other prices to 29.1 percent above. In most instances prices were substantially the same. In All cases Price differences of More than 15 percent were due to prs differences of less than 15 percent were due to receipt lot pricing procedures. At Tsa eur Cor we enjoy hearing from our custom ers As this provides us with a Means of understanding our customers concerns and the impetus to act on them. When you have questions about your commissary the Best place to Start is with your commissary officer. We also suggest that you take your questions and concerns to your local commissary Council which meets regularly in your Community. Suggestion cards Are available in every commissary and we also rotate an at your service program among our commissaries with comment cards that Are sent directly to and answered by me. You May also Contact our Public affairs officer who will be Happy to assist you and provide you with the information you seek
