Mad Cow: Trade War of Words

Ongoing litigation to keep the U.S. border closed to Canadian beef and cattle, following three cases of mad cow disease there, has prompted renewed PR efforts. The Alberta Beef Producers hired Fleishman-Hillard, to help "reopen the U.S. market to Canadian beef." The Montana-based group R-CALF, which filed the lawsuit, "purchased a half-page advertisement in the Washington Post ... thanking the U.S. Senate for passing a resolution blocking the resumption of live cattle and full beef trade with Canada." And the Canadian Agriculture and Agri-Food Ministry is helping "launch an aggressive marketing campaign to reclaim and expand markets for Canadian beef," part of the country's "Repositioning the Livestock Industry Strategy," launched last year.