BSE case should not cause panic
Andrew Speedy, an expert in the FAO animal production and health division, said there has been no sign of an escalation of numbers in any of the countries that have identified isolated cases.
"Rather, it demonstrates that active surveillance is picking up the one-in-a-million case."
The FAO statement said "all countries should continue to check for the disease and apply precautionary measures, even where BSE has never been found.
Even countries which have not found any cases of BSE should now consider adopting more stringent measures."
Canadian officials have reported that no other case of the disease was found among the 1,160 animals that have been slaughtered in the search for more possible outbreaks.
The single case, however, has caused havoc on Canada's $7.5 billion a year cattle and beef industry as several countries, including the United States, have temporarily banned imports.
Last year, Canada exported 1.7 million head of live cattle and 373,000 tonnes of beef, worth $2.5bn, to the US.
Meanwhile, BSE figures in Ireland are in decline. There have been 100 cases in the first five months of this year compared with 167 for the same period last year.
