Scrapie Forum Looks to the Future

As the United States closes in on a scrapie-free designation, the time has come to begin conversations about where the American sheep industry goes once it crosses the seven-year finish line established by the World Organization for Animal Health. That conversation started in earnest on Wednesday at the American Sheep Industry Association-hosted Scrapie Free in the U.S.: Moving from an Eradication to a Surveillance Program forum during the National Institute for Animal Agriculture’s Annual Conference in Kansas City, Mo.

Attended by a variety of state and national animal health officials, extension personnel and sheep industry representatives, the forum took a closer look at the American sheep industry’s journey toward finally being declared scrapie free. Only three states have yet to surpass the seven-year window required for a disease-free designation: Arkansas, Indiana and Pennsylvania. Barring any further cases, that window will close in 2028, but doesn’t mean scrapie and the programs created to eradicate it will disappear completely. As the forum title suggests, surveillance programs will most likely still be in place moving forward.

Kansas Sheep producer Matt Benz remembers the start of scrapie eradication efforts in the United States more than 20 years ago, so he made the 100-mile drive to Kansas City in hopes the forum would mark the beginning of the end for a disease that drastically changed the American sheep industry and the way it tracks sheep movement around the country.

“The reason I came is I was on the board of animal health in North Dakota about 25 years ago and the state vet said there was a U.S. Animal Health Association meeting in Little Rock,” Benz recalled after recent forum wrapped up at the Kauffman Foundation Conference Center. “They were going to be talking about scrapie, so he asked if I wanted to go. I went down and we were talking about scrapie, and the cattle guys wanted to get rid of all of the sheep in the country. Only a few of them were totally serious, but some of them were. We were talking about all of these things we needed to do with scrapie and the question was asked, ‘How prevalent is it?’ And nobody knew the answer. So, slaughter surveillance came out of that meeting.”

And slaughter surveillance won’t be eradicated anytime soon. At least that was the prevailing thought in Kansas City.

“It’s a beginning,” Benz said of the forum. “There’s a lot of confusion, but I think everyone here is on the same page that we need to continue doing slaughter surveillance for scrapie after we’re determined to be disease free. We’re a way’s away from agreeing about how it’s going to happen and who’s going to pay for it.”

ASI Animal Health Co-Chair and small flock producer Cindy Wolf, DVM, was on hand for the forum and participated in a panel discussion that included: former ASI President Cindy Siddoway of Idaho as a large flock producer; Cindy Tews of the Fresno Livestock Commission representing sale barns; Rosie Busch, DVM, of the University of California-Davis Veterinary Medicine Extension team; and UC-Davis Professor Emeritus Joan Dean Rowe as a representative of the goat industry.

One realization of the day’s forum is that after all of these years of fighting scrapie, there are still sheep and goat producers who aren’t aware of the National Scrapie Eradication Program and the scrapie tag requirements.

“I’m excited that we had so many different representatives and stakeholders here. I thought everyone is really looking forward to what this can mean for them, even though it’s hard to visualize,” said Wolf. “I’m excited because some of it is real tangible. We can do more education, we can do more surveillance, and we can learn what other pieces that need to be put together in the next two years so we can be ready for 2028.”

Read the full story in the May issue of the Sheep Industry News.

 

ALB Launches Spring Campaign

With the season of renewal bringing sprigs of meadow grass and a new crop of lambs for many producers, the American Lamb Board is launching its new Easter & Spring Entertaining Campaign to help consumers add American lamb dishes to their spring menu.

The campaign features American lamb cuts and cooking tips for consumers observing Easter, Ramadan, Passover, Greek Easter or celebrating Cinco De Mayo and Mother’s Day.

The campaign was designed to inspire consumers to incorporate American lamb into their holiday celebrations by providing engaging content, educational resources and exclusive opportunities.

“Spring is filled with so many festive holidays that are perfect for featuring American lamb,” said ALB Chairman Jeff Ebert. “I love that the new campaign also incorporates time-saving tips on traditional recipes that make enjoying American lamb even easier for busy households.”

Campaign Highlights:

• Social Giveaway: To generate excitement and drive engagement, ALB is hosting a social giveaway. Four winners will receive a leg of American lamb to elevate their Easter or Passover meals.
• Newsletter Growth: The campaign added approximately 250 new members to the Fan of Lamb Club newsletter.
• Spring Entertaining Page: A dedicated campaign landing page was developed to serve as a resource hub for spring holiday meals. This page features:
• • Recipe inspiration for Easter, Passover and other seasonal gatherings.

• • Roasting guides to help consumers confidently prepare American lamb.

• • Cooking tutorials showcasing the most popular spring lamb cuts.

ALB is also partnering with Homemade, the world’s largest online cooking school, to host a virtual Spring Holiday Cooking Class on April 10. The class – led by Chef Joel Gamoran – will be an interactive session providing step-by-step guidance on preparing the perfect Easter leg of lamb, reinforcing American lamb’s position as a premium choice for seasonal celebrations.

Source: ALB

 

Penn. Ram Test Accepting Entries

The PA Ram and Buck Growth Test & Sale will be conducted at the Samuel E. Hayes Jr. Livestock Evaluation Center in Pennsylvania Furnace, Penn, and the nomination deadline is Tuesday. This initiative offers producers valuable insight into the performance of their rams and bucks, including growth rate, carcass traits and parasite resistance.

It also provides:

• Access to a broader market, especially helpful for new or expanding operations.
• A chance to establish benchmarks within your flock or herd.
• A full morning of educational programming, followed by a performance-tested sale of rams, bucks and an invitational female sale.
• A valuable opportunity for fellow producers, scientists and extension educators to network with one another.

Transportation can be a challenge, so organizers are committed to helping with logistics where possible. If you have concerns about hauling animals to the center, please reach out to Penn State University Extension Associate Austin Brown at [email protected] or Station Manager Greg Hubbard at [email protected]. They might be able to help coordinate transport with other participants.

The sale is scheduled for Aug. 16.

Click Here for more information.

Source: Penn State University Extension

 

Currency Movements Affect Wool Market

The Australian wool recorded an overall increase this week, the rise heavily influenced by a sharp reduction in the Australian dollar against U.S. currency.

On the opening day of selling, the Australian dollar was trading at 60.59 – down from 63.01 at the close of the previous series. With such a large fall in the AUD, industry observers predicted a rise in the market. The only question was how high it would go. By the end of the day, the individual Micron Price Guides for Merino fleece had risen by between 10 and 42 cents.

These rises – combined with increases in the skirting, crossbred and oddment sectors – resulted in a 15-cent rise in the benchmark AWEX Eastern Market Indicator. Unfortunately, due to the weakened AUD, when viewed in U.S. dollar terms, the overall result was in stark contrast to the rise in the physical market. The EMI fell by 21 U.S. cents, which equated to a 2.7-percent reduction. This was the largest daily U.S. drop in the EMI since January 2024.

On the second day, the AUD fell to 59.63 U.S. cents. This was the first time the AUD fell below 60 U.S. cents since the COVID-19 pandemic (April 2020). With this further drop in the AUD, many predicted further rises in the physical market. There were some rises on the second day, but they were outweighed by the falls. The EMI dropped by 2 cents, closing the series 13 cents higher at 1,262 Australian cents. In USD terms, the market retracted further, dropping another 13 U.S. cents. The EMI closed the series at 753 U.S. cents, a 34-cent drop or a fall of 4.3 percent.

Next week is the last sale before the annual one-week Easter recess. There are currently 43,678 bales on offer in Sydney, Melbourne and Fremantle. Sydney will be holding a feature sale at the Sydney Royal Easter Show.

Click Here for the ASI Conversion Chart – AWEX Prices to USD Per Pound.

Source: AWEX

 

Legislative Update from Washington, D.C.

The American Sheep Industry Association’s lobbying firm – Cornerstone Government Affairs – offered an update this week on legislative issues in our nation’s capital.

Trump Announces Tariff Pause, Excluding China

On Wednesday, President Donald Trump announced his plans to temporarily halt the country-specific reciprocal tariffs for 90-days, with the exception to the tariffs applied to China.

Following the announcement, the White House clarified that all countries’ reciprocal tariffs will be brought down to the 10-percent baseline rate – including Australia and New Zealand – except for tariffs on China which currently sit at a rate of 145 percent, as of the time of this writing. In retaliation, China has also continued to raise tariffs on U.S. products to 84 percent from the previous 34 percent. This comes after last week’s grand announcement of the widespread global reciprocal tariffs, which seemed to trigger large swings and turmoil in the stock and bond markets.

Trump and Department of the Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent – who is expected to help take a lead in trade negotiations – relayed that more than 75 countries have come to the negotiating table and are willing to secure lower duties. The tariffs placed on Mexico and Canada have remained unchanged from their previous settings, which means United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement compliant goods will continue to see no tariffs while non-USMCA compliant goods will see a 25-percent tariff. Non-USMCA compliant energy and potash will see a 10-percent tariff.

As more trading partners come to the table during this time, the Trump Administration’s trade goals of eliminating trade barriers – both on tariffs and regulations – and reversing the U.S. trade deficit seem to remain at the center of negotiations.

The American Sheep Industry Association continues to track trade developments, and for good reason. China remains the largest market for American raw wool. In 2024, the United States exported approximately 11.5 million pounds (grease basis) to China – more than all other raw wool export markets combined. Other key destinations for American raw wool exports include Egypt, Bulgaria, the Czech Republic and India.

Given the scale of exports to China, any trade disruption could have a serious impact on American wool producers, which the sheep industry witnessed first-hand during President Trump’s first term trade war with China.

Greer Testifies Before Senate Finance & House

This week, U.S. Trade Representative Ambassador Jamieson Greer made his rounds on Capitol Hill, where he testified on behalf of the Trump Administration’s trade policy agenda before both the Senate Committee on Finance and House Committee on Ways and Means. Both hearings seemed to feature bipartisan concern regarding the potential adverse effects reciprocal tariffs might have on the United States economy and American businesses and consumers.

Republicans highlighted how the administration’s reciprocal tariffs would create new trade agreements that reduce trade barriers and lower the trade deficits, but were wary of potential unintended consequences. Further, Republicans said tariffs will promote protectionist ideals such as domestic manufacturing and job creation.

Democrats criticized Trump’s tariff policy for alienating the United States from longtime allies and the negative impact to American families. Additionally, Democrats raised concerns about Trump’s use of executive power while implementing his trade agenda.

Ambassador Greer defended the administration’s recent trade actions and said that while there would be no exemptions for domestic companies, negotiations are underway, and many countries have already expressed a willingness to work with the United States on the countries’ tariff rates and non-tariff barriers. Other topics of discussion across chambers included the United States-Canada-Mexico Agreement, U.S.-China relations, agricultural trade and exports, U.S.-produced steel and aluminum, domestic pharmaceutical manufacturing, digital trading markets and the de minimis exemption. You can watch the full Senate Finance hearing here and the full House Ways and Means hearing here.

Senate Ag Holds USDA Nomination Hearings

On Tuesday, the Senate Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition and Forestry held a nomination hearing for Stephen Vaden of Tennessee to be the next deputy secretary of agriculture and Tyler Clarkson of Virginia to be USDA general counsel.

Generally, Republicans and Democrats agreed on the importance of strong leadership at USDA to address challenges facing rural America. Republicans focused on the nominations of Judge Vaden and Clarkson, emphasizing their roles in supporting the USDA’s mission and addressing economic struggles in agriculture.

Democrats repeatedly criticized the Trump Administration’s blanket tariff policy, the recent funding freezes at USDA, and the necessity for USDA leadership to uphold the rule of law and support rural communities. Other topics of discussion throughout the nomination included foreign market development and various barriers to trade, importance of reauthorizing a new five-year Farm Bill, Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program work requirements, and rural development. While no date has officially been set to confirm either nominee, it is likely the committee and the full Senate will consider their nominations during the next work period in May, after the two-week Easter/Passover recess.

Rollins Weighs Farm Aid

Last Monday, during a farm tour in Iowa organized by the U.S. Department of Agriculture, Sec. Brooke Rollins announced that it is too soon to decide or expect whether agricultural market assistance will be warranted post President Trump’s rollout of global reciprocal tariffs.

During the 2018 trade war with China, USDA compensated farmers for felt losses through the Market Facilitation Program, which ultimately amounted to $23 billion in ad hoc assistance. It is being reported that members of Congress have been informed that USDA is considering using Section 32 authority to financially assist farmers as Trump implements his trade policy, if the need arises.