Lawmakers Propose Bill to Undo USDA Sheep Import Rule
A final rule that took effect in early 2022, ending bovine spongiform encephalopathy-related import restrictions for live sheep and goats and most sheep and goat products is the target of a bill introduced by five Republican senators from Western states. Sen. John Barasso, R-Wyo., tried to stop this rule before, in January 2022 (see 2201130006). USDA's Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service said that the restrictions were put in place before "extensive research” showed that sheep and goats “pose a minimal risk of spreading BSE” (see 2112020022).
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Barasso, and his Wyoming colleague Sen. Cynthia Lummis, North Dakota's two senators, and Sen. Mike Rounds, R-S.D., say the Stop and Study Sheep and Goat Import Ban would require more thorough research on any negative impacts that could result from the implementation of the rule, as well as how much sheep and goat meat and live sheep and goats are being imported into the U.S. as a result of the lifted restrictions. It also would reverse the decision while the studies are done. “In Wyoming, the sheep and goat industries have been a part of our ranching way of life since statehood. We know we can rely on American producers to provide families with safe, reliable, and healthy meat products,” Barrasso said in a Sept. 26 news release. “Imported sheep and goats are at a higher risk of being contaminated or diseased. It’s critical that we keep the ban on imported sheep and goats in place until we can prove they are free of any possible diseases or contaminations.”