US cow with suspected BSE faces British test

Published on Sunday 12 June 2005 00:11

IN WHAT could be the second US case of mad cow disease, an older animal which tested positive for the condition will undergo a last round of tests at a British laboratory to confirm the results.

The only US confirmed case of mad cow disease, or bovine spongiform encephalopathy (BSE), was found in December 2003 in a Washington state dairy cow. That discovery halted billions of dollars' worth of American beef exports and raised questions about the safety of the US food supply.

US agriculture secretary Mike Johanns said the new suspect case involved an older beef animal chosen for testing because it was a "downer" animal that could not walk when delivered for slaughter. The carcass never entered the human food or livestock feed supply, he said.

The government refused to disclose any information about the suspect animal's origin or where it was slaughtered.

US officials said they would send the animal's brain tissue to an internationally known laboratory in Weybridge, England, for a final, confirmatory test.

"We have not confirmed a case of BSE in the United States at this time," said John Clifford, chief veterinarian for the US Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service. "It's going to require additional testing to determine if this is BSE or not."

Discovery of the suspect animal comes at a time when US officials have pressed both Japan and South Korea to resume purchases of American beef. Both nations were major buyers of US beef until they suspended purchases in December 2003.

A South Korean Agriculture Ministry official said his country was studying US safety measures and was far from deciding whether to lift the import ban.

Carol Foreman of the Consumer Federation of America said there was no reason for Americans to avoid beef.