Day 069 - 19 Dec 94 - Page 45


     
     1        it.
     2
     3   Q.   You do not know?
     4        A.  No, I do not know.
     5
     6   Q.   So when a supplier assures you, or has assured you in the
     7        past, that it has only ever used US beef, you are satisfied
     8        with that assurance; is that correct?
     9        A.  Let me tell you, yes, I am; and I am, because the
    10        United States Department of Agriculture certifies that and
    11        I know where they are getting the meat.  I know that the
    12        suppliers that are getting the meat have their own cattle.
    13        There is an example of Montfort that I just submitted: they
    14        have their own cattle, their own food lot; they possess
    15        their own animals; they debone their animals and they send
    16        raw materials to their suppliers.  We make that patty.
    17        That beef is from the US and from the US only.  So, yes,
    18        I am satisfied.
    19
    20        In the US, I might add, it does not have to say "US beef"
    21        when you label it, unless you prove, unless only when you
    22        put on the statement on the label will the FSIS look into
    23        it.  A lot of our competitors, a lot of retailers, never
    24        make that claim.  In fact, I do not know of anybody who
    25        makes that claim that it is 100 per cent domestic beef from
    26        the major food suppliers, from the QSR industry.  There is
    27        a possibility that other beef gets into it.  If they do not
    28        check it, it will get there.  But once you claim it, once
    29        it is on the label, US Department of Agriculture will
    30        guarantee that, will certify that.
    31
    32   Q.   So any consignment in America that is labelled "US beef" is
    33        100 per cent domestic produce?
    34        A.  It is certified by the FSIS as 100 per cent domestic
    35        beef; yes, it is.
    36
    37   Q.   As far as you are concerned, that would satisfy McDonald's
    38        criterion?
    39        A.  Yes, that is correct.  We also verified, as I mentioned
    40        before, the other steps that we take.
    41
    42   Q.   As far as the US DA labelling regulations, have they always
    43        been the same, going back to, say, 1954?
    44        A.  No, of course not.  Everything changes, the law
    45        changes, the labelling changes.
    46
    47   Q.   Have there been any changes, say, since -- I do not know --
    48        1970?  What is your experience?  Say since 1980, have there
    49        been any changes in the categorisation, labelling system?
    50        A.  As far as I know, we started that process, when we 
    51        claimed it was domestic beef, we requested FSIS to test 
    52        it.  They have been testing that for a long time.  I do not 
    53        know how long.
    54
    55   Q.   When was that?
    56        A.  I do not know how far we go back.
    57
    58   MR. JUSTICE BELL:  He may not know.  You asked him:  "Has it
    59        always been the same?"  He may not know.
    60

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