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FACT SHEET:
BSE and U.S. Measures to Prevent its Introduction Into the United States

The recent FDA actions concerning the cattle herd in Texas that was inadvertently fed meat and bone meal generated a number of questions. For the benefit of a wider audience, answers to those questions are provided below. For more general information on BSE, please visit the APHIS BSE web site.

QUESTION: Why does the United States prohibit the feeding of protein derived from mammals (bone meal and meat meal) to ruminants?
ANSWER: FDA regulations are intended to prevent the establishment and amplification of BSE in the United States through feed and thereby minimize any risk to animals and humans. FDA regulations focus on animal feed ingredients because epidemiologic evidence gathered in the United Kingdom suggests an association between an outbreak of a ruminant TSE, specifically BSE, and the feeding to cattle of protein derived from sheep infected with scrapie, another TSE. The BSE in cattle in the U.K. was amplified through the feeding of meat-and-bone meal derived from carcasses of cattle infected with BSE. BSE has not been diagnosed in the United States, and the FDA prohibition is intended to prevent the establishment and spread of BSE in the United States through feed and thereby minimize any risk to animals and humans.
   
QUESTION: When was the prohibition put into place?
ANSWER: This prohibition has been in place since June 5, 1997.
   
QUESTION: What was the reason for quarantining the cattle herd in Texas?
ANSWER: Reports on January 25 and 26, 2001, indicate that a Texas feed mill inadvertently mixed in meat and bone meal derived from U.S. cattle with a feed supplement which later was fed to cattle. This was in violation of the feed prohibition imposed by FDA.
   
QUESTION: Is there concern the herd contracted BSE?
ANSWER: No. There is NO disease (BSE) associated with this situation. No case of BSE has been found in the United States despite aggressive testing. This situation is a compliance issue, as cattle feed mixed with prohibited mammalian material is a violation of FDA regulations. It is important to note that the prohibited material was domestic in origin, fed at a very low level, and fed only once. The potential risk of BSE to these cattle is therefore exceedingly low.
   
QUESTION: How was the violation of the feed ban identified?
ANSWER: The error was noted by the feed manufacturer within hours and immediately reported to the FDA. U.S. representatives of cattle producers, feed manufacturers, renderers, processors and veterinarians have reaffirmed their commitment to effective implementation and enforcement of sound, science-based measures to prevent BSE in the United States. This episode indicates that the multi-layered safeguard system put into place is essential for protecting the food supply and that continued vigilance needs to be taken, by all concerned, to ensure these rules are followed routinely.
   
QUESTION: How does the FDA monitor compliance with the feed ban?
ANSWER: Monitoring methods include the requirement that processors must maintain records sufficient to track the materials throughout their receipt, processing, and distribution, and make these records available for inspection by the FDA. Also, feed that contains prohibited materials must be labeled "Do not feed to cattle or other ruminants." FDA inspects feed mills to assure compliance with the regulation.
   
QUESTION: Have foreign countries taken actions against U.S. exports because of the situation in Texas?
ANSWER: No. No countries have, or should, take actions regarding this matter. It is purely a compliance issue, and does not involve any diseases. As such, countries should not impose any restrictions on U.S. products based on this incident.
   
QUESTION: What are the measures taken by the U.S. Federal Government regarding BSE so far (such as regulating or prohibiting imports, invoking domestic distribution controls, animal feed use, etc.)?
ANSWER:
1988 - USDA establishes a BSE Working Group to review available science and recommend appropriate regulatory controls.
1989 - USDA bans the importation of live ruminants (cattle, sheep, goats, deer, caribou, elk, and the like) and most ruminant products from the United Kingdom and other countries where BSE is diagnosed.
1990 - USDA begins educational outreach to veterinarians, cattle producers, laboratory diagnosticians, etc., about the clinical signs and diagnosis of BSE.
  - USDA initiates active surveillance program to examine the brains of U.S. cattle.
1991 - USDA conducts a risk assessment. Results find that conditions in the US and UK are different in regards to the number of sheep rendered.
1993 - USDA expands surveillance to include the examination of brain tissue from cattle that die before slaughter, i.e., fallen stock or "downer cows".
  - USDA updates risk analysis.
1994 - USDA expands surveillance to incorporate new technology (immunohisto-chemistry) of testing brains for the partially resistant form of the prion protein which is indicative of the TSE's.
1996 - USDA updates risk analysis.
  - FDA begins rulemaking to prohibit the feeding of most mammalian protein to cattle and other ruminants.
1997 - USDA prohibits the importation of live ruminants and most ruminant products from Europe.
  - FDA finalizes the prohibition on feeding most mammalian protein to cattle and other ruminants.
  - USDA supports FDA regulations to prohibit the feeding of most mammalian proteins to ruminants.
1998 - January - USDA publishes Advanced Notice of Proposed Rulemaking to strengthen scrapie control in U.S. domestic sheep flocks.
  - April - USDA enters into cooperative agreement with Harvard University to analyze and evaluate the Department’s prevention measures.
  - October - In consultation with USDA, the State of Vermont quarantines two flocks of sheep imported from Belgium and the Netherlands due to the risk of being exposed to BSE-contaminated feed.
1999 - October - USDA expands surveillance of fallen stock (downer cows).
  - November - USDA publishes proposed rule to strengthen efforts for scrapie eradication in U.S. domestic flocks.
2000 - July - The Secretary of Agriculture issues Declarations of Extraordinary Emergency to seize the two flocks of sheep in Vermont after 4 animals have been found to have an atypical TSE of foreign origin.
  - December - USDA prohibits all imports of rendered animal protein products, regardless of species, from 30 countries in Europe. This decision followed the recent determination by the European Union that feed of non-ruminant origin was potentially cross-contaminated with the bovine spongiform encephalopathy (BSE) agent. The restriction applies to all products originating, rendered, processed or otherwise associated with European animal protein products.

February 2, 2001


Last modified: Tuesday, August 30, 2005