Mad Cow found in U.S., Japan and S. Korea may ban imports

[KevinTheOmnivore]

I can't find any stories online about the ban being proposed by Japan and South Korea, it seems as if CNN is ahead in breaking the story. Anyway.....

http://www.cnn.com/2003/US/12/23/mad.cow/index.html

First U.S. case of mad cow disease
Farm in Washington state under quarantine

Tuesday, December 23, 2003 Posted: 8:13 PM EST (0113 GMT)

WASHINGTON (CNN) -- The first apparent case of mad cow disease in the United States has been discovered in Washington state, the U.S. Department of Agriculture said Tuesday.

Two tests have already been carried out on the cow enabling Agriculture Secretary Ann Veneman to call the case a "presumptive positive" and a sample is being flown to England for a third test to absolutely confirm the case.

Bovine spongiform encephalopathy, or BSE, is linked to a similar form of the incurable and fatal brain-wasting disease in humans, called variant Creutzfeldt-Jakob Disease, or vCJD. There have been a small number of cases of vCJD reported worldwide, primarily in the United Kingdom, in people who ate BSE-contaminated meat.

Officials believe that meat from the Washington animal left a processing plant, Veneman said, and an investigation is under way to determine if any had reached store shelves.

However, that does not mean the public is in danger, Veneman said.

"One important thing to remember is that muscle cuts of meat have almost no risk," Veneman said, emphasizing that the disease is typically spread by consumption of brain or nerve tissue, which did not enter the food system. "I know of no science to show that you can transmit BSE from muscle cuts of meat."

The sick animal came from a farm in Mabton, Washington, about 40 miles southeast of Yakima. It was a so-called "downer" animal, meaning it was unable to walk when it reached the slaughterhouse, which under USDA rules triggers automatic testing.

Veneman said the cow "tested presumptive positive for BSE."

"While this would represent the first finding of BSE in the United States we have worked hard to ensure our response is swift and effective," she said.

Separate rounds of tests, including what Veneman termed the "gold standard" procedure for detecting BSE, done at a USDA facility in Ames, Iowa, led her to term the case "presumptive positive" for BSE.

The sample was being flown by military aircraft to the United Kingdom for a final round of testing, Veneman said. Those results are expected in three to five days, she said.

The USDA has placed the farm under quarantine.

Mad cow disease first appeared in the United Kingdom in the mid-1980s and resulted in the slaughter of millions of cattle.

BSE spread across the European cattle industry after it first developed in the UK in the mid-1980s, but the first case in North America appeared in the Canadian province of Alberta in May. Eighteen farms were quarantined, but no additional cases were discovered.

The infectious agent takes at least six to eight years to cause symptoms in cows, meaning that the infected cow may have spread the disease to other cattle during that time.

A critic of cattle industry safety standards said the current case is likely "the tip of an invisible iceberg."

"There are more cases, no doubt about it," said John Stauber, author of Mad Cow, USA.

Accusing Veneman of underplaying the severity of Tuesday's finding, Stauber said the fact it took so long to find a case only underscores a weakness in the testing system.

"In Europe and Britain, they test virtually every beef animal for mad cow," Stauber said. "That's what we should be doing in the United States."
###

[AChimp]

HI-LARIOUS.

A few months ago:
"Canada has Mad Cow and therefore their beef is not safe for consumption by Americans."

Today:
"Umm... one of our own cows has Mad Cow, but everything is OK. You can still eat beef. Mad Cow's only dangerous if you eat teh brains "

[ziggytrix]

actually, it's ground meat you should stay away from. no more hamburgers for a while for me.

hello steaks!!

[AChimp]

You only stay away from ground meat to avoid E. coli, since it can't survive "inside" meat and only lives on the surface. BSE can be everywhere inside it, but mostly only lives in nerve tissue.

[Suck 'n' Fuck]

What goes around comes around.

[ziggytrix]

chimp, you stay away from ground meat because the grinding process sometimes cuts into the spine, potentially mixing nervous tissue in with the meat.

[camacazio]

I saw this on the news last night. Came right out of some small farming town not far from here in Seattle. I'm going to stick to chicken for a bit.

[AChimp]

Oh, so you're one of those "Eww! The grinder touched the spine" conspiracy theorists, huh, Ziggy? WELL I THINK THAT'S JUST CRAP.

[punkgrrrlie10]

Keith Collins, the Agriculture Department's chief economist, said countries that have issued the ban on American beef in the past two days — among them top buyers such as Japan, South Korea (news - web sites) and Mexico — account for as much as 70 percent of U.S. exports.

It seems that the ban is no longer just proposed.

http://story.news.yahoo.com/news?tmp...d=541&ncid=716

[ranxer]

this aint the first case of mad cow disease in the U.S., ive seen plenty of hushed up reports over the last decade.
http://www.prwatch.org/books/madcow.html
some reports are saying that mad cow in humans has been widely misdiagnosed as alzhiemers. woah.. another reason to keep coroners gagged.

.. that aside, abc news reported:

"Bovine spongiform encephalopathy, popularly known as mad cow disease, is caused by a misshapen protein a prion that essentially eats holes in a cow's brain. Cattle get sick by eating feed that contains tissue from the brain and spine of infected animals. The United States has banned such feed since 1997."http://abcnews.go.com/wire/Living/ap20031225_59.html

bullcrap.. at the same time the us ag dept was saying 'rendered feed' (ground leftover cattle parts) was not used to feed cows it was part of the curriculim of the american farmers industry courses.

i don't think it's true that humans can only get the disease (variant Creutzfeldt-Jakob Disease (CJD)), through eating the brain or spinal of the animal.. a bse tainted cow can transfer the disease through any part of the cow. that's what ive read anyway.

i still don't understand how anyone can think its ok to feed a vegetarian cannibalized meat for generations without major problems.


found this interesting too:
http://www.madcowboy.com/01_FactsMC.000.html#History
SPECIAL NEW MAD COW FACTOIDS: 09/13/02
"In 1907, Dr. Alzheimer published a treatise about a disease that would one day carry his name. He had two young colleagues who worked with him, Dr. Creutzfeldt and Dr. Jakob, and they too identified a similiar brain-wasting disease that now has Europe in a panic. The brains of cows turn into a sponge-like mass and their behavior is called "mad." The human variant of Mad Cow Disease has been named Creutzfeldt Jakob Disease, or CJD. The protein causing CJD has no DNA, and has been described as more like a crystal than cellular material. In labs, 1000 degree Fahrenheit heat does not destroy this protein particle. Some scientists say that once infected, the incubation period can last anywhere from one month to thirty years. As the human brain turns into a sponge, this spongioform encephalitic condition physically debilitates those so infected."

"Compelling scientific evidence suggests so-called prion disease can and has infected humans... at present, there is no reliable antemortem diagnosis, specific treatment, or vaccine to prevent the disease. The agent thought to be responsible for this unusual class of disease is a rogue protein (called a prion) that, unlike all other agents known to cause infectious disease, contains neither DNA nor RNA. The "bad" prion forms holes or a spongy appearance in the brain in all disease variants, hence the generic designation of spongiform encephalopathy." (Quintessence International, 1998 May, 29:5)

"A 24-year-old vegetarian has been diagnosed with Cruetzfeld-Jacob disease. Sceintists fear that milk and cheese may be the source of infection." (Michael Hornsby, London Times, August 23, 1997)

"The destruction of milk from suspected cows was recommended in England to insure the public's safety... Experiments also indicate that temperatures reached during pasteurization of milk and household cooking does not kill the agent. In the United Kingdom on December 1, 1988 the government announced a ban on the sale of milk from infected cattle..." (Virgil Hulse, M.D., Mad Cows and Milkgate)

"Transmission of prions from infected cattle to humans by oral intake seems no only possible but also very probable." (Annals of Italian Medicine, 1998 Oct, 13:4 )

[ScruU2wice]

this is what we get for letting britian into the coalition

[KevinTheOmnivore]

Originally Posted by AChimp

HI-LARIOUS.

A few months ago:
"Canada has Mad Cow and therefore their beef is not safe for consumption by Americans."

Today:
"Umm... one of our own cows has Mad Cow, but everything is OK. You can still eat beef. Mad Cow's only dangerous if you eat teh brains "

Haha, which is why it's funny that the USDA is now saying the cow came from CANADA!!!

[KevinTheOmnivore]

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/3797510/

U.S. traces diseased cow to Canada

The Associated Press
Updated: 11:43 a.m. ET Dec. 27, 2003

WASHINGTON - The Holstein infected with mad cow disease in Washington state was imported into the United States from Canada about two years ago, federal investigators tentatively concluded Saturday.

Dr. Ron DeHaven, chief veterinarian for the Agriculture Department, said Canadian officials have provided records that indicate the animal was one of a herd of 74 cattle that were shipped from Alberta, Canada, into this country at Eastport, Idaho.

"These animals were all dairy cattle and entered the U.S. only about two or two-and-a-half years ago, so most of them are still likely alive," DeHaven said.

He emphasized that just because the sick cow was a member of that herd, it does not mean that all 74 animals are infected.

Based on the Canadian records, the cow was 6 1/2-years-old — older than U.S. officials had thought, DeHaven said.

U.S. papers on the cow said she was 4- or 4 1/2-years-old. The age is significant because the United States and Canada have banned feed that could be the source of infection since 1997.

© 2003 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

[AChimp]

Of course they're saying it's from Canada. Far be it for the American government to take responsibility for something they should have had stricter guidelines to control.

The Canadian cow's meat never made it to market, whereas the American cow has probably already been eaten.

[kellychaos]

I'd be mad too if I had to stand in my own poop.

[AChimp]

The interesting thing is the discrepancy between the ages of the cow. Canada says the cow is more than six years old, and the U.S. says that the cow was only 4 years old.

Both can't be right, which means it's either not the same cow or one of the countries has a screwed up system. Seeing as how one country has no idea where the meat even went, we all know what my opinion is.

[KevinTheOmnivore]

I don't think Canada has denied being the cow's place of origin, have they???

[The One and Only...]

In any case, I don't expect to see a big Mad Cow outbreak in the US.

Back to beef for me, boys.

[AChimp]

http://www.canada.com/national/natio...0-02e10103f2b3

Fear rips Canadian cattle industry as U.S. says latest mad cow Alberta-born

JUDY MONCHUK
Canadian Press


December 27, 2003



Chief Veterinary Officer Dr. Brian Evans answers questions during a press conference on Saturday in Ottawa after American officials raised the possibility that their first suspected case of BSE may have originated in Canada. (CP/Simon Hayter)

CALGARY (CP) - Cattle producers were hopeful Saturday that consumer confidence in the safety of Canada's beef would remain high after U.S. officials said the mad cow discovered in Washington state has been tentatively traced to an Alberta farm.

"It's going to be a horror story one way or another - there's no question," said Mac MacLean, who runs a 16,000-head feedlot operation near Lethbridge, Alta.

"Nobody wants this," said MacLean. "Anyone who says they're not concerned isn't being honest. But truly what the public has to know is that there's not one person in North America that has died of this disease."

Neil Jahnke of the Canadian Cattlemen's Association says the new case will obviously hurt the industry, which had been hoping the U.S. border would reopen to young Canadian cattle early in 2004.

"I'm hopeful there won't be long-term repercussions," said Jahnke.

Consumers are better informed about bovine spongiform encephalopathy, the scientific name for mad cow disease, since the brain-wasting disease was discovered in a northern Alberta breeder cow in May, Jahnke added.

While industry officials appealed for patience, others worry that this latest case could shut down borders that were just starting to open up to Canadian beef.

Cattle buyer Will Irvine says this is the worst possible news for a shattered industry.

"If this cow is proven to come out of Canada, we're toast," said Irvine of the Calgary Stockyards.

"Where are we going to go? Our only hope up to now was that we could pick up some of the markets the U.S. exported to," he said. "Without that, we're ruined. This industry will not survive."

The Americans are acutely aware of the potential damage. Roughly 90 per cent of the U.S. export market has been lost since Dec. 23 when American agriculture officials announced a Washington cow had tested positive for mad cow.

Canada's beef industry has lost more than $1.9 billion in exports alone since May, when more than 30 countries immediately slammed their borders to Canadian beef. Those restrictions have only recently begun to be lifted, mostly to cuts of boneless beef from animals under 30 months believed at low-risk of contracting the disease.

The U.S. picked up most of that business, with exports soaring 17 per cent after world markets shunned Canadian beef.

Ted Haney of the Canada Beef Export Federation says even if this latest animal is proven to come from Canada, it will not have a major impact on opening international borders.

"May there be a month or two delay? Yes. Will there be a year or two delay? No," he said.

Canada's chief veterinarian said it's premature to tag Alberta as the source of the mad cow found in Washington state, noting there are serious discrepancies over the age of the animal involved.

American officials originally said the infected animal was 4½ years old. But the ear tag identification linking the cow to an Alberta herd is for an animal born in April 1997 - making it 6½ years old.

"No ear tag is tamper-proof, ear tags can be removed and reapplied, but again, we're not intimating that that in fact is the circumstance here," said Dr. Brian Evans, Canada's lead investigator with the Canadian Food Inspection Agency.

"What we're suggesting is that we need to verify, using scientific methods such as DNA, that the animal that left Canada with that ear tag is in fact the animal that the U.S. is pursuing at this point."

Evans said the identification comes from a former dairy operation north of Edmonton. He would not name the farmer because the connection has not been verified. The herd no longer exists.

There is no connection between the infected Holstein dairy cow and the northern Alberta breeder cow which was found to have the brain-wasting disease in May.

Haney said the possibility of Canada having other cases of mad cow have been discussed with foreign market regulators since the beginning of the crisis seven months ago. Canada has an estimated 15 million cattle and minimal risk for BSE is described as fewer than one positive case per million.

"That would allow us to have up to 12 positives, possibly 15 positives, in our national herd before we would lose our minimum risk status and we don't expect anything like that," said Haney.

"There may be one or two more, but this does not fundamentally change the basis on which the market access negotiations have taken place."

More than half of Canada's cattle are in Alberta, where industry officials were hopeful that sound science would be the determining factor in border closures. But Arno Doerksen of the Alberta Beef Producers acknowledged it was a scary time.

"There's no doubt that this creates a level of uncertainty and sure, that sends a chill through all of us," said Doerksen.

"But I think we need to take a measured approach to this. It's preliminary at this point... We simply need to keep our heads about this and not overreact."

Jahnke said even with a second positive test for mad cow, it is minuscule compared with the 200,000 cattle in Great Britain which tested positive for the brain-wasting disease in the 1980s during the mad cow scare.

"In North America, where we have more cattle than they have, we've had two," said Jahnke. "I think it's amazing that they've been able to find those two and I'm very proud of our inspection services and the surveillance they to make sure these animals don't get into the food chain."

Provincial officials in Alberta will offer to help Americans nail down the origin of the infected cow, said Agriculture Minister Shirley McClellan.

"We have an excellent system, as you know from our own experience, of trace-out and trace-back, very good records, and when an animal crosses the border, that's even stricter records," McClellan said from her home in New Brigden, Alta.

McClellan wasn't sure what effect the latest news would have on the border reopening.

Alberta Premier Ralph Klein could not be reached for comment.

***************************

Canada hasn't denied anything because there isn't enough information to say one way or the other. If we deny it, and it turns out to be true, everyone says, "Look at the silly Canadians!" If we deny it and end up being right, everyone says, "Oooh! The Canadians are acting all smug! Look at how tough they are!"

It's easier to just wait for more info, and it will be interesting to see if US officials give in to the requests for a much more detailed analysis. All the US media appears to be saying that the cow definitely came from here, but there isn't really any conclusive proof.

Next you'll think we have WMD.

[The One and Only...]

No, we want to keep trading with you guys.

[Big Papa Goat]

Someone told me that the mad cow in Alberta was imported from the US. :/

[Supafly345]

I don't eat beef.

[glowbelly]

me neither. i made the choice to stop eating all meat all together. it's been one of the best choices i've made in my life so far.

"One important thing to remember is that muscle cuts of meat have almost no risk,"

ALMOST no risk.

shame on these people. this disease is horrid. i highly recommend that if you are a meat eater, you stop eating beef immediately. not only to protect yourself, but to protect the animals.

[Protoclown]

But what ELSE am I supposed to eat?

[El Blanco]

Well, I will continue eating beef, because I am freekin addicted, but I also strongly reccomend bison.

Its a little leaner and tastes better in my opinion. Problem is, its a little more expensive and hard to get.