Day 241 - 26 Apr 96 - Page 55


     
     1        Then I miss out the rest of that paragraph and just read
     2        the beginning of the next one:  "US companies annually
     3        import more than 330 million pounds of Central American
     4        beef (including live calves) an amount that represents 25
     5        per cent of the region's annual beef production and 90 per
     6        cent of its beef exports".
     7
     8        I refer to the chart on the right-hand side where it has
     9        the US imports from Central America and for Costa Rica --
    10        yes, it includes Costa Rica exports to the USA 46 million
    11        and a bit of manufacturing beef and 20 million pounds
    12        weight of carcasses and cuts, basically.  Guatemala, the
    13        equivalent figures are seven and a half million pounds and
    14        three-and-a-third million pounds.  At the bottom it has a
    15        little star underneath the chart saying, "Not including
    16        imports by cattle".  I think that just refers to Mexico
    17        where live cattle are imported from Mexico.
    18
    19        Then going back to the previous paragraph, the very last
    20        sentence just really refers to the charts:  "Today
    21        Nicaragua ship beef both to the United States and Cuba, and
    22        Costa Rica has assumed first place of beef exports to the
    23        United States.  In some years Costa Rica exports up to
    24        two-thirds of its total beef production.  Guatemala
    25        consistently sells US companies between one-quarter and one
    26        thirds of its beef production".
    27
    28        If I can move onto the bottom of the central column, the
    29        incomplete paragraph there, starting with the words, "The
    30        process":  "The process of converting Central America's
    31        rainforest and agricultural land to grassland is largely
    32        financed by international credit.  The interAmerican
    33        Development Bank, the World Bank and the United Nations
    34        Development Fund have provided generous loans to Central
    35        American countries to expand the amount of land in beef
    36        cattle production, construct new beef packing plants and
    37        protect livestock against disease".  Then it continues
    38        explaining that matter.
    39
    40        If I go to page 17; page 17 is the page 17 which, if you
    41        remember, I disclosed a few days ago because it was wrongly
    42        photocopied.  So if you have a complete page 17 starting
    43        with the word "Loans" in the top left-hand corner?
    44
    45        The first full paragraph, I will read half of that:
    46        "Throughout Central America landowners find it easy to
    47        obtain financial backing for cattle ranching but not for
    48        food production.  Bankers willingly support beef cattle
    49        producers because they know that the US market for imported
    50        beef will produce the funds to pay back their loans". 
    51 
    52        Then in the middle column it talks about various US 
    53        organisations that provide loans and finance.  Then in the
    54        middle it says:
    55
    56        "According to the USDA, without the technical assistance
    57        these organisations provide, cattle production in the
    58        American Tropics would be unprofitable, if not impossible.
    59        As a response to this international financial and technical
    60        support, exports of deboned frozen beef were the most

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