Day 241 - 26 Apr 96 - Page 38
1 distribution to McDonald's franchises. However, two USDA
2 inspectors not working at the same plant maintained that
3 Equity had never used any imported beef.
4
5 "The controversy surrounding the imported beef issue is
6 on-going, with the fervour of environmentalists, however
7 well-intentioned, clashing with the interests of the food
8 industry and the public's demand for hamburgers. I
9 have long believed that this issue is a 'tempest in a
10 teacup' which, unfortunately, obscures the larger social,
11 economic, political and moral interests of the human race
12 and the planet which hosts all life.
13
14 "While the importance of the planet's tropical rainforests
15 as a vital genetic reservoir and its myriad other benefits
16 - both regionally and globally - has become better
17 understood during the last decade, rainforest destruction
18 has doubled in the same period.
19
20 "We all have an obligation - a sacred responsibility - to
21 act in a manner that reflects our common needs - not our
22 uncommon differences. We need to develop, through
23 education at all levels of society, a global consciousness
24 that will govern our actions as responsible planet stewards
25 and 'future ancestors'. Acrimony leads only to further
26 disagreement, not solutions. Just as the purveyors of
27 fast-food in the United States are diversifying their
28 offerings in non-beef items, the environmental movement
29 needs to replace strident rhetoric with solid information
30 and gentle persuasion. The future - or the lack of a
31 future - belongs to everyone". That is signed "Douglas R.
32 Shane, 24th July 1993".
33
34 MR. JUSTICE BELL: Just pause there. I think we will break off
35 there and resume again at 2 o'clock.
36
37 MS. STEEL: Sorry, could I ask for one thing from Mr. Shane's
38 book to maybe be taken out?
39
40 MR. JUSTICE BELL: Yes, have you got the reference for it?
41
42 MS. STEEL: It is actually not, strictly speaking, about
43 McDonald's but I just noticed it and I thought it might be
44 helpful. It is on page -----
45
46 MR. JUSTICE BELL: Where do I find it?
47
48 MS. STEEL: Right, sorry. It is in kingfisher blue, bundle 1.
49
50 MR. JUSTICE BELL: What, supplementary or original?
51
52 MS. STEEL: No, it is the original. It is in tab 8 of that
53 bundle.
54
55 MR. JUSTICE BELL: Yes.
56
57 MS. STEEL: It is on page 18 of the book; it is just after the
58 Cattle Productivity and Problems. It says: "Beef cattle
59 raised in the humid tropics generally require one hectare,
60 2.5 acres, per head although ... and the nutritional value
