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compiled by Lynn Snyder

On May 20, bovine spongiform encephalopathy (BSE), commonly known as mad cow disease, was discovered in an 8-year-old cow in Canada. At press time, the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) had placed Canada under BSE restriction guidelines and was not accepting any ruminants or ruminant products from Canada into the United States.

"We have a high degree of confidence that we do not have BSE in the United States and that it is not likely that the disease will become a significant problem," said William Shulaw, an Ohio State University Extension beef/sheep veterinarian. "The U.S. ban on feeding ruminant-derived protein to ruminants, the ban on imports of cattle, sheep, and their products from countries that have had the disease, and our surveillance efforts to detect the disease in U.S. cattle give us that confidence." BSE has never been detected in the United States

Investigations by Canadian authorities traced the cow to its most recent farm, where it lived the past three years, and two others in the same province. All three farms were quarantined, and the 150-head herd at the most recent farm was destroyed for testing. Canadian officials are still trying to determine the cow's birthplace.

Brian Roe, an assistant professor in Ohio State’s Department of Agricultural, Environmental and Development Economics, said consumer demand is the most critical issue surrounding the confirmed case of mad cow disease. "It could mean a substantial increase in prices for beef, depending on how long the embargo of beef products from Canada continues," Roe said. The U.S. beef industry is the country's largest single agricultural enterprise, which in 2000 totaled $40.76 billion in sales of cattle and calves and supported an additional $147.6 billion of economic output.

The United States receives roughly 9 percent of Canada’s beef, whether processed or through live animals. "We are basically facing a 9 percent shortfall of beef now if demand were unchanged," Roe said. "And roughly speaking, for every 1 percent of supply you take away from the marketplace, price goes up anywhere from 1 percent to 2 percent depending on demand conditions."

"In the eyes of the U.S. market, there are mixed effects with the BSE case in Canada," Roe said. "For the producers, it’s a double-edged sword. They like the fact that supply is being reduced because they can get higher prices, but the longer the issue lingers, the more likely general demand will be shaken, hence, demand will come down and subsequently we’ll experience lower prices."

Ohio Cattlemen's Association Executive Vice President Elizabeth Harsh said the cattle market is back even stronger now and the numbers she has seen show Memorial Day sales of beef were strong. She added the association's emphasis has been on assuring consumers that beef is safe.

ODA: risk to humans low

According to a statement released from Ohio Department of Agriculture Director Fred Dailey, USDA Secretary (Ann) Veneman has said that risk to human health and the possibility of transmission of the disease to animals in the United States is very low, as meat from the cow did not enter the food supply.

Dailey said Ohio has been part of a federal-state partnership for more than a decade to implement a comprehensive set of safeguards to prevent BSE from entering the United States. For example:

• ODA’s Animal Disease Diagnostics Laboratory participates by submitting animal tissue samples to the federal lab in Ames, Iowa. The department sent 451 brain tissue samples in federal fiscal year 2002. So far in federal fiscal year 2003, Ohio has sent 330 samples. The samples are collected by both state and federal inspectors.
• ODA’s Division of Meat Inspection continues to conduct pre-slaughter inspection of every animal that is processed in nearly 100 state inspected slaughter facilities.
• ODA’s Plant Industry Division inspects feed manufacturers for proper labeling to keep mammalian tissue out of cattle feed according to federal law. The division has completed 147 of these inspections so far in federal fiscal year 2003. The department completed 196 inspections in FFY 2002. The inspections are done under contract with FDA. The department conducts additional label inspections under state feed labeling laws.