According to information by the Canadian government a confirmed case of mad-cow disease in a cow in British Columbia has been found.
The case was of a 6-year-old dairy cow which was identified on a Fraser Valley farm through a national surveillance program for mad-cow disease.In a written statement, "This finding does not affect the safety of Canadian beef. Tissues in which BSE is known to concentrate in infected animals are removed from all cattle slaughtered in Canada for domestic and international human consumption."
It becomes important because Mad-cow disease (bovine spongiform encephalopathy BSE), a degenerative disease of the central nervous system of cattle. There is no cure and no test to determine whether it exists in live animals or in muscle tissue, according to the U.S. Department of Agriculture.
"Accordingly, the CFIA has published proposed regulatory amendments, and following extensive consultations, is now in the process of finalizing their content. Information gathered through this investigation will help us to determine what, if any, impact this should have on our beef and live cattle trade with Canada. Based on the information currently available, I do not anticipate a change in the status of our trade."
Canada's trade with the United States in cows younger than 30 months, as well as meat, resumed in July 2005 because the younger cows are thought to have a lower disease risk, was also told.
