Bovine Spongiform Encephalopathy in Two Canadian Cows — January 2005

On January 2 and 11, 2005, the Canadian Food Inspection Agency (CFIA) announced the confirmation of bovine spongiform encephalopathy (BSE, also known as "mad cow" disease) in two cows from the province of Alberta. One of the cows was born in October 1996 and the second cow was born in March 1998, after the Canadian government instituted a ruminant feed ban in 1997. No part of these animals has entered the human food supply, according to CFIA.

These two BSE-positive cows bring the total number of BSE-infected cows identified in or linked to Canada to four, including a BSE-positive cow identified in Washington State that was later determined to have originated from Alberta. CDC is in communication with the U.S. Department of Agriculture and will continue to monitor these developments closely.

For More Information

More updated information on the BSE situation in Canada is available from the CFIA website at: http://www.inspection.gc.ca/english/anima/heasan/disemala/bseesb/bseesbindexe.shtml.

Current USDA BSE information and testing results are available on the website of the Animal Plant and Health Inspection Service, USDA, at http://www.aphis.usda.gov/lpa/issues/bse/bse.html.