The following is a statement from USDA
Deputy Administrator Dr. John Clifford for the Animal Plant Health
Inspection Service which was released at 5:30 pm EDT, June 25. There
will be no further information available until the test results are
released. Please check www.bseinfo.org for additional information
on the expanded BSE surveillance testing and updates.
STATEMENT BY DEPUTY ADMINISTRATOR
DR. JOHN CLIFFORD FOR THE ANIMAL PLANT HEALTH INSPECTION SERVICE
JUNE 25, 2004 -- "At approximately 5:30 this evening, we were
notified that an inconclusive
BSE test result was received on a rapid screening test used as part
of our enhanced BSE surveillance program.
"The inconclusive result does not mean we have found another
case of BSE in
this country. Inconclusive results are a normal component of most
screening
tests, which are designed to be extremely sensitive so they will detect
any
sample that could possibly be positive.
"Tissue samples are now being sent to USDA's National Veterinary
Services Laboratories-the national BSE reference lab-which will run
confirmatory testing.
"This animal did not enter the human food chain nor the feed
chain.
"I know that there will be great interest in the specifics surrounding
this inconclusive test result, such as what type of animal was tested,
where the animal was from, and which lab did the testing. Because
this test is only an inconclusive test result, and because of the
chance the confirmatory results will be negative, we are not going
to disclose that information at this time.
"APHIS has begun internal steps to identify the animal to be
prepared if further testing were to return a positive result.
"Confirmatory results are expected back from NVSL within the
next 4 to 7 days, and we will announce the test results then. And,
if the test comes back positive for BSE, we will of course provide
additional information about the animal and its origin.
"In the meantime, there are two particular points I would like
to make:
"First: no matter how the confirmatory testing comes back, USDA
remains confident in the safety of the U.S. beef supply. Again, this
animal did not enter the human food chain or feed chain. Our ban on
specified risk materials from the human food chain, provides the protection
to public health, should another case of BSE ever be detected in the
United States. By banning SRM-or skull, brain, trigeminal ganglia,
eyes, portions of the
vertebral column, spinal cord and dorsal root ganglia from cattle
aged 30 months or older, and tonsils and the small intestine of cattle
of all ages-USDA ensures all SRMs, or those materials most likely
to contain the BSE agent, are removed from a suspect animal.
"Second, this is not at all unexpected. Screening tests are often
used in both human and animal health. They are designed to cast a
very wide net in order to catch any possible patient that may have
the condition, many of which will end up negative during further testing
- glucose testing for diabetes is a good example. This is the type
of screening test we are using for BSE surveillance testing.
"And some subset of these animals may even turn out to be positive
for BSE. While none of us wants to see that happen, that is not unexpected
either. Our surveillance program is designed to test as many animals
as we can in the populations that are considered to be at high risk
for BSE. If we test 268,000 animals in the next 12 to 18 months, which
we are fairly well on track to do-we will be able to find the disease
if it occurs in as few as 1 in 10 million adult cattle with a 99 percent
confidence level. In other words, our program could detect BSE even
if there were only five positive animals in the target population
in the entire country.
"Additional measures to strengthen public health safeguards include
the longstanding ban on imports of live cattle, other ruminants, and
most ruminant products from high-risk countries; FDA's 1997 prohibition
on the use of most mammalian protein in cattle feed; an aggressive
surveillance program that has been in place for more than a decade;
the banning of non-ambulatory cattle from the human food chain; the
process control
requirement for establishments using advanced meat recovery (AMR)
systems; prohibiting the air-injection stunning of cattle; and, if
an animal presented for slaughter is sampled for BSE, holding the
carcass until the test results have been confirmed negative.
"In 2001 and again in 2003, Harvard University conducted an independent
assessment that affirmed USDA's BSE control and prevention measures.
This assessment further affirmed that even with one or more detections
of BSE in this country, U.S. control efforts will minimize any possible
spread of the disease and ultimately eliminate if from the U.S. cattle
population."
Additional Information:
The government has built and maintained four effective firewalls to
ensure that U.S. beef remains safe from BSE.
--In 2003, USDA strengthened its food safety program by banning from
the human food supply any cattle that appear ill, are unable to walk
or show signs of possible neurological disease. The USDA also prohibited
from the food supply any material from animals that could carry the
BSE agent (specified risk materials or SRMs, such as spinal cord or
brain).
--In 1997, the FDA banned feeding cattle the type of animal-derived
protein that can spread BSE. International experts agree that a feed
ban breaks the cycle of BSE and assures it will be eliminated. The
FDA reports a remarkable 99 percent compliance rate for the feed ban.
--In 1990, the United States was the first country in the world without
BSE to begin a BSE surveillance and testing program.
--In 1989, the United States was the first country in the world without
BSE to ban imports of beef, cattle products and cattle from countries
where BSE is prevalent.
To learn more about the risks of BSE, information can found at the
following websites:
Centers for Disease Control Q&A:
www.cdc.gov/ncidod/diseases/cjd/bse_cjd_qa.htm
<http://www.cdc.gov/ncidod/diseases/cjd/bse_cjd_qa.htm>
Food and Drug Administration Q&A:
www.fda.gov/cber/bse/bseqa.htm#a1
<http://www.fda.gov/cber/bse/bseqa.htm#a1>
U.S. Department of Agriculture Q&A:
http://www.aphis.usda.gov/lpa/issues/bse/bse_q&a.html
<http://www.aphis.usda.gov.1pa/issues/bse_q&a.html>
Beef Industry Scientific Panel Information Resource:
www.BSEinfo.org <http://www.bseinfo.org/>
