How We Protect Food from BSE

Public health was never at risk during the recent Canadian BSE incident as the animal never entered the food chain. The rapid response of the Canadians and USDA proved that the safeguards both countries have in place worked. 

“We’re glad that we have the plans and infrastructure in place that we’ve been working on since 1986,” said Chandler Keys, NCBA vice president of Government Affairs. “We still have the gold standard for safety and we’re working diligently with the government and Canadians to resolve this.  This shows that the systems we have in place worked.”

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

•        The BSE agent is not found in muscle. It is found in central nervous system tissue such as brain and spinal cord and is labeled as such.

•        All U.S. cattle are inspected by a veterinarian before going to slaughter. Animals with signs of neurologic abnormalities are not allowed in the human food chain and are tested for BSE.  These samples are sent overnight to the National Veterinary Services Lab in Ames, Iowa, and results are provided within eight days on average.

•        BSE affects older cattle. The vast majority of the cattle going to market in the U.S. are less than 24 months old. BSE has never been found in commercial cattle less than 20 months old.

•        The United States began a BSE surveillance program in 1990 and was the first country without the disease within its borders to test cattle for the disease. The surveillance system targets non-ambulatory cattle, older cattle, animals exhibiting signs of neurologic abnormalities, as well as animals that die on the farm. No BSE or any similar disease has ever been found in U.S. cattle.

•        The U.S. banned imports of live ruminants and most ruminant from countries with BSE beginning in 1989.

•        A multi-year risk analysis conducted by Harvard University reported  “the U.S. is highly resistant to any introduction of BSE.” Harvard’s report also said “Measures taken by the U.S. government and industry make the U.S. robust against the spread of BSE to animals or humans should it be introduced into this country.”

Some media reports are speculating a link between chronic wasting disease in deer and BSE in cattle.  This is not the case.  Multiple research projects indicate there is no cross species transmission under natural conditions. This includes a 10-year trial at Colorado State University, now in its sixth year, in which cattle are commingled in a secure area with CWD-infected deer.

The U.S. has the safest food supply of any country in the world. Beef producers have enhanced product safety in recent years through $1.6 million in checkoff-funded BSE research and have specifically funded research that strengthens our knowledge of BSE to help assure the security of U.S. beef products.