February 10, 2017
Botulism-tainted feed killed
11,000 mink, lawsuit claims
By MATEUSZ PERKOWSKI
Capital Press
About 11,000 mink at an
Oregon ranch died from feed
contaminated with botulism,
resulting in $2.8 million in
losses to the grower, accord-
ing to a lawsuit.
A complaint filed by the
farm — AMC LCC of Mount
Angel, Ore. — accuses the
Northwest Farm Food Coop-
erative of gross negligence
and breach of contract, among
other allegations, for supply-
ing the tainted feed in 2016.
The National Food Corp.,
an egg producer, is also named
as a defendant in the lawsuit
because the tainted feed was
allegedly manufactured from
the company’s “spent hens”
that have stopped laying
eggs.
The complaint alleges that
the mink became ill and be-
gan dying within days after
the cooperative’s feed was
delivered to the ranch in July
2016.
An investigation later
determined the disease was
caused by botulism in the
chicken meat.
Botulism is caused by a
nerve toxin produced by cer-
tain strains of Clostridium
bacteria that grow in improp-
erly processed food.
An attorney for AMC
LLC said he couldn’t com-
ment on the lawsuit and Cap-
ital Press was unable to reach
the farm’s owner. The North-
west Farm Food Cooperative
and the National Food Corp.
did not respond to requests
for comment.
Complaint pertains to pesticides
containing 31 active ingredients
By MATEUSZ PERKOWSKI
Capital Press
Capital Press File
A new lawsuit claims that
botulism-tainted feed killed
11,000 mink on an Oregon
farm, causing $2.8 million in
losses.
By JOHN O’CONNELL
Capital Press
John O’Connell/Capital Press
Jeanne Debons, executive director of the Potato Variety Management Institute, with potato varieties
under her organization’s management at the recent University of Idaho Potato Conference in Pocatel-
lo. PVMI is releasing two new varieties — Castle Russet and Echo Russet.
increasing restrictions on fu-
migants, mop-top is becoming
more prevalent.
Research by Chuck Brown,
a potato breeder with USDA’s
Agricultural Research Ser-
vice in Prosser, Wash., has
shown planting Castle Russet
also helps reduce the amount
of powdery scab inoculum in
soil. Furthermore, Castle is re-
sistant to all strains of potato
virus Y and to corky ringspot,
which is spread by the stub-
by root nematode and should
also become more difficult to
control as regulators further
restrict fumigants.
“There are not many pota-
toes right now that have that
combination (of resistance), as
well as others,” Debons said.
Echo is set apart by its
strong yield. Echo averaged
980 hundredweight per acre in
trials at Oregon State Univer-
sity’s Hermiston Agricultural
Research and Extension Cen-
ter from 2006 through 2008
— 80 hundredweight more
than Russet Burbank. Castle’s
yields are comparable to Rus-
set Burbank, said Vidyasagar
Sathuvalli, an assistant pro-
fessor of potato breeding and
genetics in Hermiston.
5
Endangered Species
Act lawsuit over
pesticides resurrected
New Northwest spuds offer strong disease resistance
BEND, Ore. — Officials
representing the Idaho, Or-
egon and Washington po-
tato breeding programs say
they’re releasing a pair of new
russet varieties that should
help position the industry to
cope with more stringent reg-
ulations on soil fumigants.
The new Tri-State Potato
Breeding Program varieties —
Castle Russet and high-yield-
ing Echo Russet — are billed
as medium- to late-maturing
potatoes appropriate for use
in both the fresh market and
processing. Testing has shown
they also have good culinary
qualities and cold sweetening
resistance, so they fry with a
light color even after months
in storage.
The Potato Variety Man-
agement Institute, which
handles licensing and royalty
collection of Tri-State variet-
ies, decided to release them in
December, said PVMI Execu-
tive Director Jeanne Debons.
She said a limited number of
mini-tubers — those grown
from tissue cultures — are
available to interested seed
growers.
Debons said Echo and
Castle are resistant to potato
mop-top virus, vectored by the
hard-to-control powdery scab
fungus. As regulators place
CapitalPress.com
The initial cross for Echo
was made in Aberdeen, Ida-
ho, in 1996, and the line was
selected by the Oregon State
University breeding program.
“The yields are excep-
tionally good for Echo in all
three production regions in
the Northwest, said. “(Echo)
has been in the system for a
while, but there was always
an interest among the growers
and processors, so we finally
decided to release it as a va-
riety.”
Brown made the cross for
Castle in Prosser in 2006, and it
was also selected in Oregon.
The 9th U.S. Circuit
Court of Appeals has resur-
rected legal claims against
the U.S. Environmental
Agency over pesticides con-
taining 31 active ingredi-
ents. A federal judge previ-
ously dismissed the lawsuit
in 2014.
The Center for Biologi-
cal Diversity and the Pesti-
cide Action Network North
America filed a complaint
arguing that EPA should
have analyzed the chemi-
cals for detrimental effects
on threatened and endan-
gered species.
Under the Endangered
Species Act, the U.S. Fish
and Wildlife Service and
the National Marine Fish-
eries Service must consult
on whether certain fed-
eral government actions
would affect protected
species.
U.S. Magistrate Judge
Joseph Spero rejected the
environmental
groups’
claims because they were
time-barred or outside the
court’s jurisdiction.
While the 9th Circuit
agreed with much of Spe-
ro’s decision, the appellate
court revived the plaintiffs’
argument that EPA’s regis-
tration of pesticide products
was an agency decision that,
under the ESA, required
consultation with other
agencies.
The
environmental
groups cannot challenge
the EPA’s risk assessments
of the 31 active ingredients
in the pesticides, as legal
claims over these decisions
are time-barred, the ruling
said.
However, the EPA’s reg-
istrations of actual pesti-
cide products that contain
the active ingredients are
distinct decisions that may
be subject to ESA con-
sultation, the 9th Circuit
said.
Stephanie Parent, an at-
torney for the plaintiffs,
said she expects the pesti-
cide products have negative
effects on protected species
that would trigger consulta-
tion.
The
environmental
group’s goal is for EPA to
impose “common sense”
measures on pesticide us-
age that would prevent
harm to threatened and en-
dangered species, Parent
said.
While the agency has al-
ready undertaken ESA con-
sultation for the pesticides
chlorpyrifos, diazinon and
malathion, the plaintiffs
want the EPA to set firm
deadlines for evaluating
other active ingredients, she
said.
Croplife America, a pes-
ticide industry group, and
several other agribusiness
organizations have inter-
vened in the lawsuit as de-
fendants.
In a statement, Croplife
America’s president and
CEO, Jay Vroom, said he
was pleased the 9th Circuit
upheld much of Spero’s rul-
ing.
Vroom said it’s unfor-
tunate the 9th Circuit’s
ruling “leaves unresolved
the full conflict” between
the
Endangered
Spe-
cies Act and the Feder-
al Insecticide, Fungicide
and Rodenticide Act —
which regulates pesticides
— but that Croplife Amer-
ica “remains committed to
pursuit of that satisfactory
resolution.”
6-1/#4