Canada quarantines three ranches due to BSE
By Drovers staff
| Thursday, May 22, 2003
Only one case of BSE has been confirmed in Alberta, Canada, but the Canadian Ministry of Agriculture is taking no chances. The ranch where the confirmed BSE-positive cow originated was quarantined Tuesday, and two additional ranches were quarantined Wednesday as the investigation of Canada's first BSE case in a decade continues. USDA Secretary Ann Veneman stressed in a statement that the risk to human health and the possibility of transmission to animals in the United States is extremely low. Canadian officials said the remaining animals from the 150-head cow herd from which the affected cow came will be destroyed and tested for BSE. An investigation is underway to determine the origin and management history of the affected cow.
The 8-year-old cow was sent to a packing plant in January, but animal-health inspectors condemned the animal when it appeared sick. The cow was slaughtered on Jan. 31 and sent to a rendering plant. Apparently, inspectors did not suspect BSE at the time of slaughter, but the animal's head was retained for later testing, which confirmed the disease. The last case of BSE in Canada occurred in 1993. The herd of origin was destroyed and there was no further spreading of the disease. The origin of the 1993 cow was determined to be an import from England.
NCBA held a teleconference Tuesday afternoon to brief the news media on the issue, and representatives of national news organizations including USA Today, CNN, ABC NEWS, The New York Times and The Washington Post participated along with agricultural trade media. CEO Terry Stokes stressed that the United States has a vigorous system of safeguards and firewalls in place to keep BSE out of the country. He also commended Canadian officials for identifying the animal and keeping it from entering the food system. USDA has temporarily halted imports of live ruminant animals, beef and all ruminant-derived products from Canada pending further investigation. During 2002, U.S. imports of Canadian cattle totaled about 1 million head, and the United States imported about 1 billion pounds of Canadian beef.
