R-CALF United Stockgrowers of America
“Fighting for the U.S. Cattle Producer”
For Immediate Release Contact: R-CALF USA CEO Bill Bullard
May 23, 2012 Phone: 406-252-2516; r-calfusa@r-calfusa.com
USDA’s New BSE Rule Eliminates Important Protections Needed to Prevent BSE
Spread
Billings, Mont. – Contrary to meatpacking industry claims, the U.S.
Department of Agriculture’s (USDA’s) proposed rule regarding bovine spongiform
encephalopathy (BSE or mad cow disease) eliminates key protections contained in
current regulations that are designed to prevent the introduction and spread of
BSE into the United States from foreign countries. Current USDA regulations
require that bone-in beef imported from BSE-affected Canada be derived only from
cattle “that have been subject to a ruminant feed ban equivalent to the
requirements established by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration. . .”
That requirement is in addition to the requirement that the beef also be
derived from cattle that have had all specified risk materials (SRMs) removed at
slaughter.
“Under USDA’s newly proposed BSE rule, bone-in beef from Canada will no
longer be required to be derived only from cattle subject to a ruminant feed
ban, meaning beef from older Canadian cattle born before the effective date of
Canada’s feed ban could be freely imported into the United States,” said R-CALF
USA CEO Bill Bullard.
“Not only that,” he added, “USDA intends to open our borders to countries
that have had over a thousand cases of BSE, such as Ireland, France, and the
United Kingdom; and to countries that have had hundreds of cases of BSE, such as
Portugal, Spain, and Germany, and USDA would not require the beef from any of
those countries to be derived only from cattle that have been subject to a
ruminant feed ban.”
Bullard said many of the countries from where USDA wants to begin importing
beef continue to detect new BSE cases and no one, including the USDA, can
explain why those new cases persist even after those countries have purportedly
adopted all recommended mitigation measures. “USDA’s proposed BSE rule is
reckless. If it is adopted, the risk of introducing BSE into the United States
from foreign countries will increase,” Bullard concluded.
# # #
R-CALF USA (Ranchers-Cattlemen Action Legal Fund, United Stockgrowers of
America) is a national, nonprofit organization dedicated to ensuring the
continued profitability and viability of the U.S. cattle industry. For more
information, visit www.r-calfusa.com or, call 406-252-2516.
Subject: Bovine Spongiform Encephalopathy; Importation of Bovines and
Bovine Products APHIS-2008-0010-0008 RIN:0579-AC68
Comment from Terry Singeltary Document ID: APHIS-2008-0010-0008 Document
Type: Public Submission This is comment on Proposed Rule: Bovine Spongiform
Encephalopathy; Importation of Bovines and Bovine Products Docket ID:
APHIS-2008-0010 RIN:0579-AC68
Topics: No Topics associated with this document View Document: More
Document Subtype: Public Comment Status: Posted Received Date: March 22 2012, at
12:00 AM Eastern Daylight Time Date Posted: March 22 2012, at 12:00 AM Eastern
Daylight Time Comment Start Date: March 16 2012, at 12:00 AM Eastern Daylight
Time Comment Due Date: May 15 2012, at 11:59 PM Eastern Daylight Time Tracking
Number: 80fdd617 First Name: Terry Middle Name: S. Last Name: Singeltary City:
Bacliff Country: United States State or Province: TX Organization Name: CJD TSE
PRION Submitter's Representative: CONSUMERS
Comment: comment submission Document ID APHIS-2008-0010-0001
Greetings USDA,
OIE et al, what a difference it makes with science, from one day to the
next. i.e. that mad cow gold card the USA once held. up until that fateful day
in December of 2003, the science of BSE was NO IMPORTS TO USA FROM BSE COUNTRY.
what a difference a day makes$ now that the shoe is on the other foot, the USDA
via the OIE, wants to change science again, just for trade $ I implore the OIE
decision and policy makers, for the sake of the world, to refuse any status quo
of the USA BSE risk assessment. if at al, the USA BSE GBR should be raise to BSE
GBR IV, for the following reasons. North America is awash with many different
TSE Prion strains, in many different species, and they are mutating and
spreading. IF the OIE, and whatever policy makers, do anything but raise the
risk factor for BSE in North America, they I would regard that to be highly
suspicious. IN fact, it would be criminal in my opinion, because the OIE knows
this, and to knowingly expose the rest of the world to this dangerous pathogen,
would be ‘knowingly’ and ‘willfully’, just for the almighty dollar, once again.
I warned the OIE about all this, including the risk factors for CWD, and the
fact that the zoonosis potential was great, way back in 2002. THE OIE in
collaboration with the USDA, made the legal trading of the atypical Nor-98
Scrapie a legal global commodity. yes, thanks to the OIE and the USDA et al,
it’s now legal to trade the atypical Nor-98 Scrapie strain all around the globe.
IF you let them, they will do the same thing with atypical BSE and CWD (both
strains to date). This with science showing that indeed these TSE prion strains
are transmissible. I strenuously urge the OIE et al to refuse any weakening to
the USA trade protocols for the BSE TSE prion disease (all strains), and urge
them to reclassify the USA with BSE GBR IV risk factor.
SEE REFERENCE SOURCES IN ATTACHMENTS
PLEASE SEE Terry S. Singeltary Sr. _Attachment_ WORD FILE ;
***Also, a link is suspected between atypical BSE and some apparently
sporadic cases of Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease in humans. These atypical BSE cases
constitute an unforeseen first threat that could sharply modify the European
approach to prion diseases.
Second threat
snip...
MAD COW USDA ATYPICAL L-TYPE BASE BSE, the rest of the story...
***Oral Transmission of L-type Bovine Spongiform Encephalopathy in Primate
Model
***Infectivity in skeletal muscle of BASE-infected cattle
***feedstuffs- It also suggests a similar cause or source for atypical BSE
in these countries.
***Also, a link is suspected between atypical BSE and some apparently
sporadic cases of Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease in humans.
The present study demonstrated successful intraspecies transmission of
H-type BSE to cattle and the distribution and immunolabeling patterns of PrPSc
in the brain of the H-type BSE-challenged cattle. TSE agent virulence can be
minimally defined by oral transmission of different TSE agents (C-type, L-type,
and H-type BSE agents) [59]. Oral transmission studies with H-type BSEinfected
cattle have been initiated and are underway to provide information regarding the
extent of similarity in the immunohistochemical and molecular features before
and after transmission.
In addition, the present data will support risk assessments in some
peripheral tissues derived from cattle affected with H-type BSE.
Friday, May 18, 2012
Update from APHIS Regarding a Detection of Bovine Spongiform Encephalopathy
(BSE) in the United States Friday May 18, 2012
TSS
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