Ottawa confirms new case of mad cow disease - Canada's first since 2011
Food Inspection Agency says BSE found in a beef cow in Alberta state, though no part of the animal entered the human food chain
The Canadian Food Inspection Agency has confirmed a new case of mad cow disease in the western state of Alberta.
No part of the animal’s carcass entered the human food or animal feed systems, the agency said.
In a statement on Thursday, the agency said bovine spongiform encephalopathy was detected in a beef cow through the national BSE surveillance programme, the first since Canada last confirmed a case reported in 2011.
The agency said it is investigating to confirm the age of the cow, its history and how it became infected, with a focus on the feed supplied to the animal during the first year of its life.
Beef is a major agricultural export product for Canada. In 2013, Canada was the fifth biggest supplier of beef to Japan, exporting 12,691 tons, accounting for 2.4 per cent of the East Asian country’s overall import volume.
Canada is recognised as a “controlled BSE risk” country by the World Organisation for Animal Health.
