This is your brain (L). This is your brain with Mad Cow Disease (R).
Just when you thought it was safe to enjoy a nice rare burger or a steak tartare, think again. According to the USDA, a case of bovine spongiform encephalopathy or BSE/mad cow disease was discovered in California. The animal was selected for testing by Baker Commodities Inc., at one of their rendering plants in Hanford, California. The cow was a dairy cow who died in one of California’s Central Valley dairy farms. Had the cow been rendered, it would have ended up in animal feed, as other animal products, or used for chemicals.
The USDA maintains that mad cow disease is not a significant threat as a food-borne illness in the United States, due to laws that prohibit the use of spine, brain, and other high-risk parts of the cow from entering the food supply system. The estimated chance of getting sick from mad cow-tainted meat is one in 10 billion.
“Evidence shows that our systems and safeguards to prevent BSE are working, as are similar actions taken by countries around the world,” said John Clifford, the USDA’s chief veterinarian, who said that BSE cases are down 99 percent from 1992 levels. “This is directly attributable to the impact and effectiveness of feed bans as a primary control measure for the disease.”
Last year, only 29 cases of BSE were reported worldwide versus 37,311 cases in 1992. This is only the fourth case of mad cow in the United States this year.
Tags: Hanford, California, Mad Cow Disease, Baker Commodities Inc., bovine spongiform encephalopathy, BSE, mad cow disease found in California, fourth case of mad cow disease found in the United States, USDA, food safety, food supply safety, dairy cow found with mad cow disease, john clifford
