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Summer started out with a bang for the Texas cattle industry when USDA confirmed that a 12-year-old Brahman-cross cow testing positive for bovine spongiform encephalopathy (BSE) came from a herd in the Lone Star State.
The cow, originally tested and sampled in November 2004, was blocked and removed from the human food supply last year at the time of testing. While the tests in November indicated the animal did not have BSE, retesting in England in June confirmed the animal had the disease.
The Texas Animal Health Commission, working jointly with USDA, conducted an epidemiological investigation and response. As a result, some 67 adult animals were culled from the undisclosed herd and all tested negative at the National Veterinary Services Laboratory in Ames, Iowa.
The infected cow—the second confirmed BSE case in the United States and the first confirmed from a cow born and raised in this country— was born before the beef industry's ban on feeding ruminant-derived protein to cattle.
That is just one of the progressive steps the U.S. cattle industry and government have put in place to keep the beef supply safe. Others include banning from the human food supply any cattle that are unable to walk or show signs of a neurological disorder. Also, USDA mandates that material that would most likely carry the BSE agent, such as the brain and spinal cord, be removed from the food supply.
In addition, USDA's BSE testing protocol requires testing of emaciated or injured cattle, cattle that exhibit central nervous system disorder, cattle unable to rise or to walk normally, and cattle that die for unknown reasons. Since June 1, 2004, brain tissues from more than 400,000 head of cattle have been tested in the U.S., with more than 38,000 of those in Texas.
USDA was quick to issue new testing protocols with the discovery of the new BSE case. If another BSE rapid screening test results in an inconclusive finding, USDA will run both an IHC (immunohistochemistry) and Western Blot confirmatory test—both considered "gold standard" tests for the disease. If results from either confirmatory test are positive, the sample will be considered positive for BSE.
"I want to make sure we continue to give consumers every reason to be confident in the health of our cattle herd," Agriculture Secretary Mike Johanns said. "By adding the second confirmatory test, we boost that confidence and bring our testing in line with the evolving worldwide trend to use both IHC and Western blot together as confirmatory tests for BSE."
Other BSE-related developments continued fast and furious throughout the month of July. Highlights included:
•An announcement by USDA on July 27 of a non-definitive test on an animal sampled as part of a voluntary extension of USDA's enhanced surveillance program.
Samples from the cow in question are being sent for further testing at the National Veterinary Services Laboratories in Ames, Iowa, and in Weybridge, England.
The sample, submitted by a private veterinarian, was taken from a cow that was at least 12 years of age that had experienced complications in calving. The animal did not enter the human or animal food supply.
Tests results were not known at press time.
•USDA implemented the BSE minimal-risk region rule that permits imports from Canada of live cattle under 30 months of age. The first shipment of Canadian cattle in more than two years entered the United States on July 18.
"This is great news for the future of the U.S. beef industry, specifically the many ranchers, feeders, and processing plants that have been struggling to make ends meet due to the closed border," Ag Secretary Johanns said. "It also bolsters our position with other international trading partners by following the very advice we have given them to base trade decisions on sound science."
On July 14, the Ninth Circuit overturned the Montana District Court's preliminary injunction, which had barred implementation of the USDA rule.
The Montana District Court hearing on the R-CALF lawsuit against USDA's minimal-risk rule, originally scheduled for July 27 in Billings, Mont., was postponed indefinitely.
The U.S. border is now open to cattle and bison less than 30 months of age for processing. The U.S. border is also open for imports of goats and sheep less than 12 months of age for immediate slaughter, as well as a broader range of meat products. The U.S. rule also removes all bovine spongiform encephalopathy-related import restrictions for elk, deer, llamas and alpacas.
•Chile has agreed to begin importing U.S. beef and beef products from animals less than 30 months of age. Prior to banning beef from the United States because of concern about BSE, Chile imported $5.3 million of beef in 2003.
