Mad Cow
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BStrongBwell*
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Here is info from the USDA on Mad Cow:
Consumer Questions and Answers About BSE
What is "Mad Cow Disease" (Bovine Spongiform Encephalopathy)?
Mad Cow Disease is the layperson's name for Bovine Spongiform Encephalopathy (BSE), a transmissible, slowly progressive, degenerative, fatal disease affecting the central nervous system of adult cattle. There is no evidence to date of BSE affecting U.S. cattle, * despite an aggressive surveillance program under which nearly 20,000 animals were tested last year.
Does BSE affect humans?
BSE is a disease that affects cattle. However, there is a disease similar to BSE called variant Creutzfeldt-Jakob Disease (CJD), or vCJD, which is found in humans. There have been a small number of cases of vCJD reported, primarily in the United Kingdom, occurring in people who consumed beef that may have been contaminated. (As of May 2003, there have been a total of approximately 139 cases of vCJD worldwide.) There is strong scientific evidence (epidemiological and laboratory) that the agent that causes BSE in cattle is the agent that causes vCJD in people. The one reported case of vCJD in the United States was from a young women that contracted the disease while residing in the UK. The symptoms appeared years later after the young woman moved to the U.S.
The disease, vCJD, which primarily affects younger persons, is very hard to diagnose until the disease has nearly run its course. In its early stages, the disease may manifest itself through neurologic symptoms, but it is not until the latter stages of the disease that brain abnormalities detectable by x-ray or MRI can be seen.
Is it possible to get vCJD from eating food purchased in the United States?
The disease, vCJD, has been associated with the consumption of foods produced from BSE infected animals. Because BSE has never been found in the U.S., * it is unlikely that food purchased in the U.S., such as at a grocery store or restaurant, would be contaminated. The U.S. Department of Agriculture's Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service has restricted the importation of live ruminants, such as cows and sheep, and most food products from these animals from BSE countries since 1989, and from all European countries since 1997. It is important for consumers to know that:
No meat products from ruminant animals from the 33 countries identified as having BSE or at risk for having BSE are allowed in the U.S. This includes meat products used in human, animal, and pet foods. Milk and milk products continue to be imported into the U.S. from these countries because milk and milk products are not believed to pose any risk for transmitting BSE to humans. Experiments have shown that milk from BSE-infected cows has not caused infections in the same species or in other test animals.
Under an Import Alert, FDA stops cosmetic and dietary supplement ingredients containing bovine materials from animals originating in the 33 countries where BSE has been found or is at risk for being found from entering the U.S.
What is being done to determine whether the newly recognized vCJD is occurring in the United States?
With heightened concern about vCJD in Europe, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention have enhanced their vCJD surveillance in the U.S. To date, there has been one reported case of vCJD in the United States. A young women contracted the disease while residing in the UK. The symptoms appeared years later after she moved to the U.S.
What is the current risk to American consumers traveling to foreign countries of acquiring vCJD?
According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the current risk of acquiring vCJD from any specific country appears to be extremely small, but cannot be precisely determined because cattle products from one country might be distributed and consumed in others.
When and how did BSE in cattle occur?
BSE has been of great concern since 1986, when it was first reported among cattle in the United Kingdom. At its peak, in January 1993, almost 1,000 new cases per week were identified. The outbreak in the United Kingdom may have started from the feeding of scrapie-contaminated sheep meat-and-bone meal to cattle. Scrapie is a disease of sheep that is related to BSE in cattle. There is strong evidence that the outbreak in cattle was amplified in the United Kingdom by feeding rendered bovine meat-and-bone meal to young calves. The nature of the transmissible agent in BSE is not known. Currently, the most accepted theory is that the agent is a modified form of a normal cell surface component known as a prion protein. Why or how this substance changes to become disease-producing is still unknown. Prions are resistant to common treatments, such as heat, to reduce or eliminate its infectivity or presence.
Milk and milk products from cows are not believed to pose any risk for transmitting the BSE agent because experiments have shown that milk from BSE-infected cows has not caused BSE in cows or other test animals.
What countries have reported cases of BSE or are considered to have a substantial risk associated with BSE?
These countries are: Albania, Austria, Belgium, Bosnia-Herzegovina, Bulgaria, Croatia, Czech Republic, Denmark, Federal Republic of Yugoslavia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Ireland, Israel, Italy, Liechtenstein, Luxembourg, Former Yugoslavia Republic of Macedonia, The Netherlands, Norway, Oman, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Slovak Republic, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, Japan, and United Kingdom (Great Britain including Northern Ireland and the Falkland Islands).
Canada has recently been added to this list of countries from which imports are restricted.
Is BSE Affecting Cattle in the United States?
Active surveillance for BSE in the highest risk cattle in the United States has failed to identify any cases of BSE in the United States. * Federal and state agencies have taken a series of actions to prevent the introduction of BSE into the US food supply.
For example, to prevent BSE from entering the United States, firm restrictions were placed on the importation of live ruminants and ruminant products including meat, meat-and-bone meal, offals, and glands from countries where BSE was known to exist. These restrictions were later extended to include importation of ruminants and certain ruminant products not only from BSE-positive countries, but also countries thought to be at high risk for BSE, even if the disease hadn't been identified in those countries.
In addition, FDA prohibits the use of most mammalian protein in the manufacture of animal feeds given to ruminants because this kind of feeding practice is believed to have initiated and amplified the outbreak of BSE in the United Kingdom.
Are these actions being taken against Canadian products?
Yes, FDA and USDA have expanded their BSE import restrictions to include Canadian products.
Is BSE, the disease that affects cattle in Europe and has now occurred in a beef cow in Canada, the same as CWD, the disease that affects elk and deer in the US?
Many different "Transmissible Spongiform Encephalopathies" (TSE) exist in different animals (including people). To date, we have found no evidence that the TSE in cattle (BSE) and the TSE in deer and elk (CWD) are related, but research is continuing. FDA is working closely with other government agencies and the public health community to address CWD in wild and domesticated herds. Wildlife and public health officials advise people not to harvest, handle, or consume any wild deer or elk that appear to be sick, regardless of the cause, especially in those states where CWD has been detected.
Is the beef in the U.S. considered safe to eat?
FDA, in collaboration with other federal agencies, has preventive measures already in place to reduce the American consumer's risk of exposure. There is no evidence that BSE has infected U. S. cattle, * and FDA continues to implement policies to prevent exposure to the public through FDA regulated products, including food, food ingredients, dietary supplements and cosmetics that contain bovine materials.
How is BSE spread among cattle?
It is believed that BSE is spread when cattle eat animal feed that contains the mammalian protein from other infected rendered animals. FDA, with its feed ban, has restricted the use of rendered mammals in ruminant feed.
What is being done to prevent Canadian products that may be contaminated with BSE from entering the United States?
The risk to human health resulting from the BSE-infected cow in Canada is extremely small, if it exists at all; no meat from this animal entered the human food supply. When this case was reported from Canada, FDA and USDA reacted immediately. USDA added Canada to its BSE restricted countries list, and USDA and FDA expanded their restrictions on imports from BSE countries to Canadian products.
FDA will continue to work with USDA to stop a wide variety of products (animal feed, human food) with bovine-derived materials from being imported into the U.S. from BSE restricted countries, including Canada. In addition, both FDA and USDA are cooperating with the Customs Service to ensure food safety at the border.
Consumer Questions and Answers About BSE
What is "Mad Cow Disease" (Bovine Spongiform Encephalopathy)?
Mad Cow Disease is the layperson's name for Bovine Spongiform Encephalopathy (BSE), a transmissible, slowly progressive, degenerative, fatal disease affecting the central nervous system of adult cattle. There is no evidence to date of BSE affecting U.S. cattle, * despite an aggressive surveillance program under which nearly 20,000 animals were tested last year.
Does BSE affect humans?
BSE is a disease that affects cattle. However, there is a disease similar to BSE called variant Creutzfeldt-Jakob Disease (CJD), or vCJD, which is found in humans. There have been a small number of cases of vCJD reported, primarily in the United Kingdom, occurring in people who consumed beef that may have been contaminated. (As of May 2003, there have been a total of approximately 139 cases of vCJD worldwide.) There is strong scientific evidence (epidemiological and laboratory) that the agent that causes BSE in cattle is the agent that causes vCJD in people. The one reported case of vCJD in the United States was from a young women that contracted the disease while residing in the UK. The symptoms appeared years later after the young woman moved to the U.S.
The disease, vCJD, which primarily affects younger persons, is very hard to diagnose until the disease has nearly run its course. In its early stages, the disease may manifest itself through neurologic symptoms, but it is not until the latter stages of the disease that brain abnormalities detectable by x-ray or MRI can be seen.
Is it possible to get vCJD from eating food purchased in the United States?
The disease, vCJD, has been associated with the consumption of foods produced from BSE infected animals. Because BSE has never been found in the U.S., * it is unlikely that food purchased in the U.S., such as at a grocery store or restaurant, would be contaminated. The U.S. Department of Agriculture's Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service has restricted the importation of live ruminants, such as cows and sheep, and most food products from these animals from BSE countries since 1989, and from all European countries since 1997. It is important for consumers to know that:
No meat products from ruminant animals from the 33 countries identified as having BSE or at risk for having BSE are allowed in the U.S. This includes meat products used in human, animal, and pet foods. Milk and milk products continue to be imported into the U.S. from these countries because milk and milk products are not believed to pose any risk for transmitting BSE to humans. Experiments have shown that milk from BSE-infected cows has not caused infections in the same species or in other test animals.
Under an Import Alert, FDA stops cosmetic and dietary supplement ingredients containing bovine materials from animals originating in the 33 countries where BSE has been found or is at risk for being found from entering the U.S.
What is being done to determine whether the newly recognized vCJD is occurring in the United States?
With heightened concern about vCJD in Europe, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention have enhanced their vCJD surveillance in the U.S. To date, there has been one reported case of vCJD in the United States. A young women contracted the disease while residing in the UK. The symptoms appeared years later after she moved to the U.S.
What is the current risk to American consumers traveling to foreign countries of acquiring vCJD?
According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the current risk of acquiring vCJD from any specific country appears to be extremely small, but cannot be precisely determined because cattle products from one country might be distributed and consumed in others.
When and how did BSE in cattle occur?
BSE has been of great concern since 1986, when it was first reported among cattle in the United Kingdom. At its peak, in January 1993, almost 1,000 new cases per week were identified. The outbreak in the United Kingdom may have started from the feeding of scrapie-contaminated sheep meat-and-bone meal to cattle. Scrapie is a disease of sheep that is related to BSE in cattle. There is strong evidence that the outbreak in cattle was amplified in the United Kingdom by feeding rendered bovine meat-and-bone meal to young calves. The nature of the transmissible agent in BSE is not known. Currently, the most accepted theory is that the agent is a modified form of a normal cell surface component known as a prion protein. Why or how this substance changes to become disease-producing is still unknown. Prions are resistant to common treatments, such as heat, to reduce or eliminate its infectivity or presence.
Milk and milk products from cows are not believed to pose any risk for transmitting the BSE agent because experiments have shown that milk from BSE-infected cows has not caused BSE in cows or other test animals.
What countries have reported cases of BSE or are considered to have a substantial risk associated with BSE?
These countries are: Albania, Austria, Belgium, Bosnia-Herzegovina, Bulgaria, Croatia, Czech Republic, Denmark, Federal Republic of Yugoslavia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Ireland, Israel, Italy, Liechtenstein, Luxembourg, Former Yugoslavia Republic of Macedonia, The Netherlands, Norway, Oman, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Slovak Republic, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, Japan, and United Kingdom (Great Britain including Northern Ireland and the Falkland Islands).
Canada has recently been added to this list of countries from which imports are restricted.
Is BSE Affecting Cattle in the United States?
Active surveillance for BSE in the highest risk cattle in the United States has failed to identify any cases of BSE in the United States. * Federal and state agencies have taken a series of actions to prevent the introduction of BSE into the US food supply.
For example, to prevent BSE from entering the United States, firm restrictions were placed on the importation of live ruminants and ruminant products including meat, meat-and-bone meal, offals, and glands from countries where BSE was known to exist. These restrictions were later extended to include importation of ruminants and certain ruminant products not only from BSE-positive countries, but also countries thought to be at high risk for BSE, even if the disease hadn't been identified in those countries.
In addition, FDA prohibits the use of most mammalian protein in the manufacture of animal feeds given to ruminants because this kind of feeding practice is believed to have initiated and amplified the outbreak of BSE in the United Kingdom.
Are these actions being taken against Canadian products?
Yes, FDA and USDA have expanded their BSE import restrictions to include Canadian products.
Is BSE, the disease that affects cattle in Europe and has now occurred in a beef cow in Canada, the same as CWD, the disease that affects elk and deer in the US?
Many different "Transmissible Spongiform Encephalopathies" (TSE) exist in different animals (including people). To date, we have found no evidence that the TSE in cattle (BSE) and the TSE in deer and elk (CWD) are related, but research is continuing. FDA is working closely with other government agencies and the public health community to address CWD in wild and domesticated herds. Wildlife and public health officials advise people not to harvest, handle, or consume any wild deer or elk that appear to be sick, regardless of the cause, especially in those states where CWD has been detected.
Is the beef in the U.S. considered safe to eat?
FDA, in collaboration with other federal agencies, has preventive measures already in place to reduce the American consumer's risk of exposure. There is no evidence that BSE has infected U. S. cattle, * and FDA continues to implement policies to prevent exposure to the public through FDA regulated products, including food, food ingredients, dietary supplements and cosmetics that contain bovine materials.
How is BSE spread among cattle?
It is believed that BSE is spread when cattle eat animal feed that contains the mammalian protein from other infected rendered animals. FDA, with its feed ban, has restricted the use of rendered mammals in ruminant feed.
What is being done to prevent Canadian products that may be contaminated with BSE from entering the United States?
The risk to human health resulting from the BSE-infected cow in Canada is extremely small, if it exists at all; no meat from this animal entered the human food supply. When this case was reported from Canada, FDA and USDA reacted immediately. USDA added Canada to its BSE restricted countries list, and USDA and FDA expanded their restrictions on imports from BSE countries to Canadian products.
FDA will continue to work with USDA to stop a wide variety of products (animal feed, human food) with bovine-derived materials from being imported into the U.S. from BSE restricted countries, including Canada. In addition, both FDA and USDA are cooperating with the Customs Service to ensure food safety at the border.
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