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Vermont cows soon may head
for Cuba
By Bruce Edwards Rutland
Herald. Times
Argus, Vermont, June 8, 2005.
Some Vermont cows are finally getting
their chance to take a long trip to Cuba.
Seven months after signing a contract to
buy Vermont cows, Cuban officials will visit
the state next week to select more than
100 cattle for export to the communist island
nation.
The three Cuban officials are scheduled
to arrive in Brattleboro on Saturday as
part of a five-state swing to purchase 500
head of cattle, according to John Parke
Wright IV, a Florida rancher who is brokering
the Vermont sale.
The Cuban officials - a veterinarian, a
cattle selector and the business manager
for Alimport, the Cuban import agency -
will spend four days next week inspecting
and selecting more than 100 Holsteins and
Jerseys.
Wright said the Holstein Association in
Brattleboro is coordinating the selection
process under the direction of Dr. Gerardo
Quaassdorff.
"He's selecting cattle as we speak,"
Wright said Tuesday. "There's a pre-selection
process."
Vermont Agriculture Secretary Steve Kerr
said the itinerary includes visits to 10
to 15 farms around the state.
"It looks as though we'll probably
start to look at cattle on Sunday because
the cows, a lot of them are in Windham and
Windsor counties, but then we have to go
up to Orleans and over to Addison and Franklin,"
Kerr said.
Last fall when the Vermont contract was
signed at Havana's annual trade fair, it
was estimated that Vermont dairy farmers
would receive between $1,600 and $2,200
for each pure bred heifer for a deal valued
between $160,000 and $220,000.
Wright, who is also the middleman in the
purchase of 100 cows each from Maine and
Florida and has extensive business dealings
with Cuba, declined to discuss the purchase
price. But he said cattle prices are "pretty
high right now."
Kerr added that given the current market
conditions of high milk prices and a shortage
of heifers for sale, farmers should expect
to receive near the upper end of the $2,200
range.
"Those who are selling are going to
get really strong prices and that's our
ultimate goal," he said.
Because of a likely shortage of cows in
Maine, Kerr said Vermont is prepared to
sell the Cubans more than 100 head to make
up the difference.
"(We'll) supply as many from Vermont
as we can and then Maine can fill in,"
he said.
Added to the purchase price, he said Cuba
will also have to pay for a battery of tests
for each cow, plus shipping.
With U.S. visas in hand, the three Cuban
officials are also visiting Florida, Pennsylvania
and Minnesota to purchase a total of 500
head of cattle.
The Bush administration has tried to discourage
trade with Castro's Cuba, which has a poor
human rights record and is the only communist
nation in the Western Hemisphere.
Food, agricultural products and medical
supplies are the only items exempt from
the 44-year-old U.S. trade embargo of Cuba.
Once selected, the heifers will be shipped
to Port Everglades, Fla., where they'll
be quarantined for up to two weeks before
being shipped to Havana sometime in mid-
to late July, Wright said.
The deal to sell Vermont cows to Cuba is
part of a trade package negotiated last
year by Kerr that also included 3,000 metric
tons of powdered milk and 2,000 bushels
of apples.
Kerr said that the Cubans have since doubled
their order of apples to 4,000 bushels of
Macintosh. With visas already approved by
the U.S. State Department, Kerr said Cuban
officials are now scheduled to come to Vermont
in September to inspect the state's apple
crop. Based on last season's prices, Kerr
said a bushel of apples could fetch close
to $20 a bushel, perhaps more, for a potential
value of $80,000.
The powdered milk deal, valued at $6 million,
is being handled by DairyAmerica, a California
cooperative. That contract called for an
undetermined amount of powdered milk to
come from Vermont through the St. Albans
Co-op and Agri-Mark.
Based on the state's initial trade initiative
with Cuba, Kerr said it's likely to lead
to future deals.
"We're being exceptionally careful
to send them the very best cattle that are
available," he said. "Secondly,
the Cubans know we're now supplying more
cattle than they expected."
Lastly, he noted that Sen. James Jeffords,
I-Vt., recently returned from Cuba with
a letter of intent to purchase more agricultural
products from the state.
Contact Bruce Edwards at bruce.edwards@rutlandherald.com.
© 2005 Times Argus
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