LEAD: U.S. to be allowed to export beef irrespective of cattle age (Kyodo via Yahoo! Asia News) _ (EDS: ADDING MORE INFO) [News Source]

OIE relaxes safety rating on U.S., Canadian beef (Reuters via Yahoo! News) The World Organization for Animal Health (OIE) softened its security rating on U.S. and Canadian cattle on Tuesday, a move set to revive their beef exports, crippled since mad cow disease surfaced a few years ago. [News Source]

Rachel’s Blog (WDBJ 7 Roanoke) Wow! Things sure are blowing up in Blacksburg. In the short 3 and a half years I've lived here there has already been tremendous growth. But now there are at least a dozen proposals coming before council and countless other projects already under construction. [News Source]

Agriculture Ministry highlighting food quality and consumers’ rights (Radio Prague) This week, the Agriculture Ministry, Food Chamber, and food quality control bodies are holding various seminars and conferences for the general public. What have been titled "Food Safety Days" will run until Sunday and their main aim is to educate consumers about the country's food quality monitoring system and about their rights. [News Source]

Elk pose park challenge (Casper Star-Tribune) ROCKY MOUNTAIN NATIONAL PARK, Colo. -- The elk whose mating rituals draw thousands of visitors to Rocky Mountain National Park each fall are in the cross hairs -- literally -- because there are too many of them. [News Source]

Standout law officer Lamb dies (Daily Inter Lake) He said she first had symptoms of the illness just two months ago. Lamb was in the hospital for four or five days before she died. Creutzfeldt-Jakob Disease is an invariably fatal brain disorder that is the human equivalent of mad cow disease or chronic wasting disease in elk. [News Source]

Rockland AM Report (The Journal News) 5:03 p.m., Orangeburg, false alarm - unintentional. 6:37 p.m., Monsey, dumpster/garbage can fire. [News Source]

Premise registration continues on plan (Iowa Farmer) Editor’s note: On Nov.. 22, the Bush administration pledged not to make a planned National Animal Identification System mandatory. However, that has not derailed movement toward a voluntary tracking system. [News Source]