NCBA BSE Advisory, January 3, 2004
To: NCBA State Partner Organizations
Contact: Karen Batra, NCBA D.C., 202-347-0228
Michele Peterson, NCBA Denver, 303-694-0305
Subject: Response to Canadian confirmed BSE case

On Jan. 2, 2005, the Canadian Food Inspection Agency (CFIA) announced a confirmed case of Bovine Spongiform Encephalopathy (BSE) in an 8-year old Alberta, Canada dairy cow. No part of the animal entered the human food or animal feed supply. The case was confirmed by an Immunohistochemistry (IHC) test after preliminary rapid tests last week returned inconclusive results. Canada diagnosed its first domestic BSE case in May 2003.

During a technical briefing this morning, CFIA officials said they are tracing the positive cow's recent offspring and its herd mates born 12 months prior to and 12 months after when it was. The positive cow was born in 1996, prior to the 1997 implementation of the Canadian feed ban. Investigators believe the cow resided on three different farms during its lifetime and the Alberta farm of origin, containing less than 200 cattle, is under quarantine as part of the investigation.

More information about the CFIA investigation is available online at:
www.inspection.gc.ca/english/anima/heasan/disemala/bseesb/bseesbindexe.shtml

In a statement released today (included at end of advisory), the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) states that it still views Canada as a BSE minimal risk country, consistent with the rule, "Bovine Spongiform Encephalopathy; Minimal-Risk Regions and Importation of Commodities," announced Dec. 29, 2004.

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NCBA Statement Regarding Announcement of Canadian Case of BSE
Jan Lyons, Kansas Cattle Producer, and President, National Cattlemen's Beef Association, January 3, 2005

"The Canadian Food Inspection Agency (CFIA) confirmed on Jan. 2 that an Alberta dairy cow born in 1996 (prior to the feed ban) has tested positive for Bovine Spongiform Encephalopathy (BSE). No part of the animal entered the human food or animal feed systems.

"This animal was identified as part of Canada's BSE surveillance program. Both Canada and the United States began an enhanced BSE surveillance program to better assess the level of risk of BSE. In doing so, finding additional cases of BSE, especially in older animals, was not unexpected.

"To date, the United States has tested 158,754 animals for BSE beginning June 1, 2004, and has not found another U.S. case.

"On Dec. 29, 2004, USDA announced the final rule to establish Canada as a "minimal risk region" for BSE which will resume imports of certain cattle and beef products from Canada to the United States. The subsequent finding of BSE in this animal should not have any bearing on the implementation of the rule scheduled for March 7, 2005. This is an important step toward normalizing global trade, which increases profitability for America's cattle producers.

"NCBA supports a multiple firewall approach to ensuring this diminishing disease has NO effect on public or animal or on our ability to trade safe beef and beef products. This firewall approach includes:

* Removal of specified risk materials (SRMs) from all animals entering the human food supply. SRMs are tissues that, in infected cattle, could potentially carry the BSE agent. This measure is internationally recognized as the most effective means to protect public health from BSE.

* A ban on ruminant-derived proteins in cattle feed since 1997. International experts agree that a feed ban breaks the cycle of BSE and assures the disease will be eliminated. The U.S. Food and Drug Administration reports a 99 percent compliance rate for the feed ban.

Canada has all these systems in place, as does the United States.

"For cattle producers, providing the safest beef in the world has always been our number one priority. We're committed to protecting the health of the consumers who purchase our product, protecting the health of our cattle herd, and ensuring sustainability for U.S. cattlemen. For generations, our livelihood has depended on providing safe, wholesome and nutritious beef to your family and our own."

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BSE Statement by Ron DeHaven, Administrator, Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service, January 3, 2005

"Yesterday, the Canadian Food Inspection Agency (CFIA) confirmed that an older dairy cow from Alberta, Canada, has tested positive for bovine spongiform encephalopathy (BSE). The infected animal was born in 1996, prior to the implementation of Canada's 1997 feed ban. No part of the animal entered the human food or animal feed systems.

"USDA remains confident that the animal and public health measures that Canada has in place, including the removal of specified risk material (SRMs) from the human food chain, a ruminant-to-ruminant feed ban, a national surveillance program and import restrictions, combined with existing U.S. domestic safeguards and the additional safeguards announced as part of USDA's BSE minimal-risk rule announced Dec. 29 provide the utmost protections to U.S. consumers and livestock.

'The extensive risk assessment conducted as part of USDA's rulemaking process took into careful consideration the possibility that Canada could experience additional cases of BSE.

"According to the World Organization for Animal Health (OIE) guidelines, a country may be considered a BSE minimal-risk country if it has less than 2 cases per million cattle over 24 months of age during each of the previous 4 consecutive years. Considering Canada has roughly 5.5 million cattle over 24 months of age, under OIE guidelines, they could detect up to 11 cases of BSE in this population and still be considered a minimal-risk country, as long as their risk mitigation measures and other preventative measures were effective.

"USDA will continue to work closely with CFIA officials as their investigation into this situation progresses."

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Confirmation of BSE positive in Alberta, Canada
Latest Information (as of January 2, 2005 - 19:00 EST)

*The Canadian Food Inspection Agency (CFIA) today confirmed that an older dairy cow from Alberta has tested positive for bovine spongiform encephalopathy (BSE). No part of the animal entered the human food or animal feed systems.

* The CFIA is continuing its investigation and has determined the infected animal's farm of origin. Efforts are now underway to identify any other animals of similar risk. Specifically, the Agency is focusing on two categories of animals: recently born offspring of the infected animal and cattle born on the same farm within a year of the infected animal.

* The Agency has also launched a feed investigation to examine what the infected animal was fed early in its life, when infection was most likely to have occurred prior to the 1997 feed ban.

Based upon additional information that we have, the animal is from a small herd of less than 50 head. The animal was euthanized on the farm and the entire animal will be incinerated preventing any possible exposure to the food supply or to animal feed.

The key talking points:

* Canada has implemented measures equivalent to those we have implemented in the United States to ensure that their food supply is safe from BSE and that their herd is protected from the spread of BSE.

* USDA has indicated that this will not have any impact on its recent announcement regarding trade with Canada.

* USDA and the beef industry started working on this animal disease in 1989 to make sure that BSE would not be a public health risk and to ensure the safety of the U.S. cattle herd.

* USDA has implemented multiple firewalls to ensure that U.S. beef is safe from BSE:

* In 1989, the U.S. government prohibited the importation of live animals or beef products from countries known to have a prevalence of BSE.

* The U.S. government implemented a surveillance program to ensure that BSE was not in the U.S. cattle herd.

* In 1997, the U.S. government banned any feed with animal derived protein that can spread BSE to ruminant animals.

* Since December 2003, additional firewalls have been implemented:

* USDA banned from the human food supply any cattle that are unable to walk or show signs of possible neurological disease.

* USDA also prohibited from the human food supply material that is most likely to carry the BSE agent (such as brain or spinal cord).

* USDA implemented an enhanced surveillance program that has to date tested over 150,000 head of cattle.

* BSE is not a public health risk.