Questions, answers on BSE

EDITOR'S NOTE -- The following article was written for the McCook Area Chamber of Commerce. It is reprinted here with permission:

By Cal Siegfried,

General Manager

Heartland Feeders LLC

BSE, or as the national media likes to call it, "mad cow disease" has been found in the United States. The U.S. Department of Agriculture announced December 23, 2003 that BSE had been diagnosed in a 6-year old dairy cow in the state of Washington. (Merry Christmas cowboy!) DNA testing confirmed the cow was born in Canada and imported to the United States in 2001. One dairy cow out of a total U.S. herd of 96.1 million head sent shock waves through the $175 billion cattle industry. It also left consumers wondering about the wholesomeness of their food supply.

In an effort to dispel the misinformation associated with this isolated case of BSE and to assure consumers that the beef they eat is safe, following are some frequently asked questions and factual answers concerning BSE.

Q: What is BSE?

BSE is a degenerative neurological disease in cattle that scientists believe is caused by misfolded proteins called prions which build up in central nervous system (CNS) tissues, eventually killing nerve cells. Scientists don't know what factors trigger this conversion. Some believe an abnormal protein itself causes the conversion while others believe a virus-like entity may be involved. Most scientists agree that the accumulation of abnormal proteins in brain cells results in altered function and eventual death of cells. The scientific name of the disease is Bovine Spongiform Encephalopathy.

Q: How is BSE spread among cattle?

BSE does not spread from animal to animal, only through feed containing ruminant-derived meat and bone meal from BSE-infected cattle. The use of ruminant-derived meat and bone meal as a protein supplement in cattle feed was banned in the United States in 1997

Q: Can humans get BSE?

Research from the United Kingdom supports a possible association between BSE and variant Creutzfeldt-Jakob Disease (vCJD) in that vCJD might have developed as a result of people consuming products contaminated with central nervous system tissue of BSE-infected cattle. However, to date, no positive scientific connection between BSE and the human variant form of CJD has been established. Documented studies report that in naturally infected cattle the BSE agent has only been found in central nervous system tissue such as brain, spinal cord and retina tissue.

While BSE is found only in cattle, sporadic CJD and vCJD are found in humans. Sporadic CJD and vCJD are distinctly separate brain diseases each with its own unique characteristics. Sporadic CJD was first identified in the 1920s and has a worldwide incidence of approximately one case per million people each year. Variant CJD was first documented in the United Kingdom in 1996 and as of January 2004 the number of definite and probable cases is 155 people. No indigenous cases of vCJD have been detected in the United States.

It should also be noted that all vCJD victims to date have had a specific genetic make-up that may make them vulnerable to this disease. About 40 percent of the population has this genetic make-up. Research continues to determine the role genetics may play in this disease.

Q: Is U.S. beef safe?

Yes. The BSE agent is not found in meat -- only in central nervous system tissues, which was removed from the infected Holstein cow before the meat was processed. Even in experimental studies in which large doses of the disease agent are injected into the brains of cattle, the BSE agent has never been found in muscle meat. In naturally infected cattle, exposure to the disease agent is even lower than in experimental conditions.

Q: How was this case detected?

The BSE surveillance system is designed to detect BSE if it exists in the United States -- and the system worked. The index cow was identified as a result of this program. Though the cow showed no signs of neurological disorder, it was non-ambulatory, and therefore in a high risk category targeted for BSE surveillance. Last year, testing reached an all time high, with 47 times more cattle evaluated than recommended by the Office of International Epizootics, the international animal health governing body. The U.S. system is designed to detect BSE even if it were occurring in less than one in a million cattle.

Q: What safeguards have been in place to protect the U.S. beef supply?

Consumers can be confident in the safety of U.S. beef for a number of reasons:

Scientific studies show that the BSE disease agent is not found in beef muscle meats or milk, only in the central nervous system tissue. The central nervous system tissue from this cow did not enter the human food supply.

In 1990 the United States became the first country without BSE to test cattle for the disease. The BSE surveillance program has mandated that all cattle with any signs of neurological disorder be tested for BSE.

BSE affects older cattle typically over 30 months of age. The vast majority of cattle going to market in the United States are less than 24 months of age. Even in European countries where BSE is at epidemic levels, there were no positive cases in the 1.6 million cattle less than 30 months of age tested in 2002.

In 1997 the United States banned the feeding practices that scientists believe spread the disease. The U.S. was the first country without BSE to implement such a feed ban.

The system to detect and eliminate BSE in the United States is effective. The cow in question was quickly identified, the farm of origin located and quarantined, and products from this animal were identified and traced.

Q: Are additional precautions being taken to protect the beef supply?

Yes. On December 30, 2003, the USDA announced additional measures to ensure that U.S. beef remains the safest in the world. The USDA has taken these measures out of an "abundance of caution." The new measures include:

USDA has banned all non-ambulatory cattle from the human food chain.

Any cattle tested for BSE are not allowed into the food supply until tests show that it is safe.

Specified Risk Material (including central nervous tissue) from all cattle over 30 months of age will be banned from entering the human food supply.

Q: Why doesn't the United States test every animal as is done in other countries?

Since the late 1980s USDA has had a plan to detect BSE if it should occur in the U.S. The level of testing far exceeds the level recommended by the Office of International Epizootics. Some European countries as well as Japan have instituted extreme testing programs because their countries face a BSE epidemic. Unlike the United States these countries did not put preventive measures in place and did not begin formal BSE surveillance until late 2000. To improve testing the USDA divided the country into eight regions and treats each region as though it were a country with the goal of exceeding international testing requirements for each region.

Q: Is organic beef safer than conventionally produced beef?

No. Science does not show that organic beef is safer than conventionally produced beef. Organic food differs from conventionally produced food in the way it is grown, handled, and processed. Beef, regardless of type, is one of the most heavily regulated and stringently tested of all foods. This conclusion is consistent with that of other organizations such as the American Dietetic Association in its position paper on organic foods and the American Council on Science and Health.

As this whole episode unfolded I became very aware of how misguided our national media is. There is a lot of truth in the old adage that "you should never let facts get in the way of a good story." Virtually every national story I saw or read was haphazard and filled with inaccuracies, misstatements, and misinformation.

On the other hand, my hat is off to our local media. They did an excellent job of trying to get the real story. In my opinion they succeeded. Thank You!!

Every consumer should know that cattle producers take their role very seriously in preventing this disease. We want our animals to be healthy and we truly are committed to producing the safest beef supply in the world. We strictly adhere to the 1997 feed ban prohibiting feeding practices that could spread BSE.

We take it seriously not only because it's the law but because we would never jeopardize the health of our cattle or compromise the U.S. food supply.

The bottom line is producers do their part to protect the U.S. cattle herd from BSE and we strongly believe in the effectiveness of the systems put in place.

I am confident in our ability to protect animal and consumer health and we as cattle producers plan to continue delivering safe, high quality, tasty, nutritious beef to your and our family's dinner table. Thank you for your confidence!