*EPF403 01/29/2004
Text: USDA to Date Has Slaughtered Nearly 700 At-Risk Cows
(Animals were in herds with BSE-cow or her calf, department says) (710)

The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) to date has slaughtered 691 cows that had at some time been in contact with a cow that tested positive for bovine spongiform encephalopathy (BSE) or a bull she calved just prior to slaughter.

USDA announced December 23 that the single case of BSE -- the first in U.S. history -- had been found in Washington state. BSE is also known as mad-cow disease.

The department has received negative BSE test results so far from 185 at-risk or culled slaughtered cows, according to a January 28 USDA statement. Tests of the other slaughtered cows are being done on an expedited basis, according to a department spokesperson.

Culled cows are those slaughtered because of old age, illness or injury.

Cows from the herd to which the bull calf was sent, although slaughtered, were too young to exhibit signs of BSE that can be detected, the spokesperson said.

Guidelines issued by the World Organization for Animal Health, or OIE, state that cows born on premises within one year before or after a BSE-infected animal are of "significant interest," USDA said.

The department to date has located 28 of the 81 animals that came to the United States from Canada with the infected cow in 2001. These cows may have been exposed to the same feed source as the infected cow, according to an earlier USDA statement. BSE can be transmitted through feed containing ruminant materials, a type of feed banned in the United States since 1997.

Following is the text of USDA's statement:

(begin text)

BSE Update
Wednesday, January 28, 2004

Depopulation Activities

On Tuesday, January 27, 2004, 15 animals of interest were euthanized and sampled from the Moxee, WA [Washington state], facility. In addition to this facility, USDA has previously conducted selective depopulation activities at these facilities:

-- Sunnyside, WA (bull calf premises) -- a total of 449 animals depopulated

-- Mabton, WA (index premises) -- a total of 131 animals depopulated

-- Mattawa, WA -- a total of 39 animals depopulated

-- Connell, WA -- a total of 15 animals depopulated

-- Boardman, OR [Oregon] -- a total of 20 animals depopulated

-- Quincy, WA --- a total of 18 animals depopulated

-- Tenino, WA --- a total of 4 animals depopulated

Samples taken from the 15 animals depopulated in Connell, WA have tested negative. All 170 samples from the index herd and the Mattawa herd have completed testing; results were negative for BSE. The final test results for the samples taken at Boardman, OR; Quincy, WA; Tenino, WA; and Moxee, WA are not yet available.

Investigation Activities

At this time, 28 of the 81 animals that came from Canada have been located:

-- 1 of the 81 is the BSE-positive cow and was located in the Index herd in Mabton, Washington.

-- 9 of the 81 were located in the Index herd in Mabton, Washington.

-- 3 were located at a facility in Tenino, Washington.

-- 6 were located at a facility in Connell, Washington.

-- 1 was located at a facility in Quincy, Washington.

-- 3 were located at a facility in Mattawa, Washington.

-- 1 was located at a facility in Moxee, Washington.

-- 3 are located at a facility in Burley, Idaho.

-- 1 is located at a facility in Othello, Washington.

Guidelines on bovine spongiform encephalopathy (BSE) issued by the World Organization for Animal Health (OIE), the international animal heath standard setting organization, state that animals born on a premises within one year (before or after) of a BSE-affected animal can be considered of significant interest to the country reporting the BSE detection. As such, USDA is focusing on 25 of the 81 animals also born into the birth herd of the index animal. Based on normal culling practices of local dairies, USDA's Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service [APHIS] estimated that the Agency would be able to locate approximately 11 of these animals. APHIS has definitively located 14 of these animals.

Trade Issues

Specific trade information can be found at http://www.aphis.usda.gov/lpa/issues/bse/bse_trade_ban_status.html.

Other Issues

Additional information on BSE can be obtained by visiting the USDA website at http://www.usda.gov. Past BSE updates can also be found at http://www.aphis.usda.gov.

(end text)

(Distributed by the Bureau of International Information Programs, U.S. Department of State. Web site: http://usinfo.state.gov)

Return to Public File Main Page

Return to Public Table of Contents