| 122nd MAINE LEGISLATURE | |||||||||
| LD 1126 | LR 0922(01) | ||||||||
| An Act To Encourage the Purchase of Meat Produced without Nontherapeutic Antibiotics | |||||||||
| Fiscal Note for Original Bill | |||||||||
| Sponsor: Sen. Cowger of Kennebec | |||||||||
| Committee: Agriculture, Conservation and Forestry | |||||||||
| Fiscal Note Required: Yes | |||||||||
| Fiscal Note | |||||||||
| Current Cost - State Mandate | |||||||||
| Undetermined current biennium cost increase - General Fund | |||||||||
| State Mandate | |||||||||
| New or Expanded Activity | Unit Affected | Costs | |||||||
| Requiring school administrative units to inform suppliers of certain meat products of the preference to purchase products that have been produced without nontherapeutic use of antibiotics is a mandate. The cost to individual school administrative units can not be determined at this time. | School | Significant | |||||||
| Fiscal Detail and Notes | |||||||||
| This legislation is intended to discourage purchasing meat products for Maine state Institutions from animals that have been given antibiotics for other than therapeutic reasons. Because the current state meat supplier does not have enough "organic" meat to adequately supply state facilities, compliance with this proposed legislation will be difficult. The organic meat available from the current state supplier is ground beef at $3.75 per pound. The state buys 81,616 pounds per year for all institutions. Maine facilities currently pay between $1.14 and $1.40 per pound. If the organic supply were available, which it is not, the additional cost of $2.35 per pound would cause the state to incur an additional cost of $191,797 per year. | |||||||||
| The University of Maine System estimates the additional cost to purchase organic meat for all of its dining facilities to be approximately $2,400,000 annually. Because dining services at all of the University of Maine campuses are self-supporting, the increased costs would be borne directly by students and others purchasing meals at the facilities, and could translate into an 11% increase in the cost of a student's yearly meal plan | |||||||||
| The additional cost to the food service operations at the Maine Community College System associated with purchasing meat from animals that have not been given antibiotics is estimated to be $178,000 per year. | |||||||||
| Because this legislation allows for the consideration of the price of organic meat products in relation to other meat products in the purchasing decision, the actual cost to the University of Maine System, the Maine Community College System, and local school administrative units can not be determined at this time. | |||||||||