FAO Discounts Recent BSE Cases as Isolated

ROME - Feb 7/05 - SNS -- Recent case of Bovine Spongiform Encephalopathy (BSE) in Canada and the United States and the reported case of an infected goat in France are isolated and should not "cause panic among consumers and producers,: the UN Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) said in a statement today.

"The three cases in Canada and the one case in the US from an imported animal are isolated incidents," said Andrew Speedy, an FAO animal production expert. These cases were detected because of the testing procedures that are now in place. More than 176,000 tests out of a total cattle population of almost 95 million have been carried out in the USA and more than 21,000 out of 14.5 million cattle in Canada during 2004. A ban on feeding ruminant protein to ruminants has been in place in both countries since 1997.

Western European countries experienced significant numbers of BSE cases in 2001-2002 but the disease is declining now in the region. There have also been some cases in Eastern Europe, Israel and Japan.

FAO said there is a need for a steady, scientific approach to ensure that the disease is kept out of unaffected countries. Identification of animals by the use of ear tags or electronic systems, national registration and movement records, compulsory testing of suspect animals, and general awareness, especially among producers and their veterinarians, are all part of essential control measures. Incentives may need to be given to encourage detection of suspect cases.

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