Cargill Special Report - Cargill Meat Solutions

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D I R E C T I O N S SECURITY THROUGH UNDERSTANDING BY DAVE LARSON, Executive Vice President The media is full of stories about Avian Influenza, or bird flu, and many emphasize the what if scenario of the virus mutating to easily infect humans. That is a concern. While we need to prepare for this possibility, it is far from certain that it will ever happen. We also should be concerned about misguided responses and unnecessary fear. This simply channels energy away from solving problems. A productive response starts with understanding. Back in 2004, there was some media frenzy over bovine spongiform encephalopathy (BSE), commonly called Mad Cow disease. Within weeks of the outbreak, I interviewed Dr. Will Hueston, director of the Center for Animal Health and Food Safety at the University of Minnesota. We discussed the problem on “The Cattle Show,” a program on a satellite network that reaches 28 million homes across North America. The program received a tremendous response from viewers. Many felt it was the first time they were getting a clear expla- nation of the facts about BSE. By providing the facts, we were able to help cattle producers make sure that they were not contributing to the problem. So what are the facts about Avian Influenza? First, as its name implies, it is a bird disease. It does not easily transmit from birds to humans. Although the virus named H5N1 has been around for 10 years, fewer than 200 people are known to have become sick. Almost all these people lived 2 CARGILL NEWS SPECIAL REPORT DIRECTIONS in close proximity to backyard flocks and failed to take basic sanitary precautions. Sadly, about half of them died. To quote Dr. Hueston: “Thankfully, this bird flu does not easily transfer from birds to humans. If you don’t have direct contact with sick poultry, the risk of contracting this bird flu appears to be very close to zero.” But as a bird flu, this virus is deadly to domesticated poultry. Without proper biosecurity, bird flu can spread rapidly among birds and poultry. Most infected flocks are virtually wiped out within 36 hours. Does this mean poultry meat is unsafe? No. First, because wild birds spread the virus, outdoor flocks are the most vulnerable. The modern poultry industry raises its birds indoors – in part to protect them from exposure to wild birds. Using an array of sanitary safeguards, our poultry business in Thailand has shown that it is possible to avoid infections even while operating in the midst of an outbreak. It is likely that most commercial flocks in countries like the United States, Canada and Brazil will “We are preparing for situations that we once felt were unthinkable.” be protected even if bird flu arrives via wild birds. But what if a commercial flock were to become infected? The poultry industry – with Cargill helping to lead the way – has developed and uses multiple tests to avoid processing infected birds, or even letting infected birds into the plant site. The very fact that this virus is so lethal to domestic flocks makes it highly unlikely that infected birds would go undetected. Commercial flocks are valuable, and their health is monitored on a daily basis. But still, what if meat from infected birds somehow ended up in grocery stores? Good sanitation and proper cooking will protect you. If you prepare the poultry using the standard precautions you use now – washing your hands, cleaning surfaces, not reusing plates or utensils that came in contact with raw poultry and cooking it to 160 F (70 C) – you will be fine. Heat kills this virus. We can use bio-security and food safety measures to protect our facilities, yet Avian Influenza will still have an economic impact on Cargill’s businesses. Some consumers will become very concerned and stop eating poultry. We already have seen significant drops in poultry demand in Europe. Beyond our poultry-processing businesses, decreasing demand for poultry will affect our animal nutrition business and even our global grain trade. Our farmer suppliers will be affected, as will many of our customers. We are going to see economic disruptions for a while. Education can mitigate these effects. Cargill is helping to provide education to
suppliers, customers and government authorities around the world. Our Cargill Animal Nutrition people in China, for example, have educated tens of thousands of Chinese farmers on how to keep their flocks safe. Cargill’s experts in bio-security have provided counsel in countries like Mozambique. We have worked with McDonald’s and sponsored an international conference in Bangkok on the control of Avian Influenza in Southeast Asia. The situation is likely to worsen before it improves. After almost 10 years of being confined to Asia, the virus has spread rapidly to Russia, Eastern Europe, Western Europe, the Middle East and Africa in less than a year. I believe it is only a matter of time before bird flu becomes a global problem. Cargill is taking steps to improve its own understanding of the problem. A special global task force is making sure that our operations are well protected and that we understand the economic impact of the disease. The people on this task force will be the experts in Cargill, and part of their charge is providing understanding to employees all over the world. That understanding includes the possibility – remote, I believe – that the bird virus will mutate to become a human virus. Nevertheless, we are preparing for situations that we once felt were unthinkable. This preparation will make us a stronger organization, whether the threat is human pandemics, terrorist attacks or other horrors. In a crisis, Cargill will have unique responsibilities. Our expertise in bio-security and the food supply chain will be vital. Our corporate purpose – being the global leader in nourishing people – will never be more important. Using the threat of Avian Influenza as a model, we are becoming a more knowledgeable, more thoughtful and better prepared organization. It starts with turning information into understanding, and then understanding into action. � A Message To Cargill Employees Cargill takes the issue of Avian Influenza (AI) very seriously. A global Avian Influenza Task Force has been working on the issue for the past 18 months. Regional taskforces also are at work – particularly in Asia and Europe – to provide information to employees, customers and suppliers. The best defense is an approach anchored in a clear understanding of the scientific facts. There is a lot of data and information in the media and online. We hope this Special Report will help you turn that data and information into understanding about Avian Influenza and what Cargill is doing to respond to the problem. We also want you to understand what Cargill cannot do, and what you can do to protect yourself and your family. We hope you find this report helpful. Questions are welcome. You can send questions to airesources@cargill.com, or ask your manager to do it for you. An internal site with extensive information on Avian Influenza can be found at: http://airesources.cargill.com Richard Frasch, Bonnie Raquet, AI Taskforce co-chair AI Taskforce co-chair CONTENTS 2 DAVE LARSON: THE VIEW FROM CORPORATE LEADERSHIP 4 WHAT TO DO ABOUT BIRD FLU? 8 UNDER CONTROL IN THE HOT ZONE 14 CONSULTING HELP IN MOZAMBIQUE 16 COPING WITH THE UNTHINKABLE CONTENTS CARGILL NEWS SPECIAL REPORT 3
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