Canada confirms new case of BSE

The Canadian government has confirmed its second case of mad cow disease in 10 days.

Agriculture minister Andy Mitchell said yesterday the latest case of bovine spongiform encephalopathy (BSE) was discovered in an Alberta cow under seven years old. He said the case was unrelated to the January 2 case, also involving an Alberta cow.

“A third case of BSE in a cow in Canada has been confirmed today through our surveillance system,” Mitchell said in Ottawa, the nation’s capital.

“This is not unexpected, as we have already acknowledged that there is a low level of incidence of BSE in North America.”

The latest case was born after a 1997 feed ban in Canada removed the use of ruminants in feed, commonly believed to be the cause of the disease. Being born after the ban makes this third Canadian cow with BSE more serious than the others because the cause could be much more difficult to trace.

The Canadian Food Inspection Agency said no part of the animal entered the human or animal food chain.

Canada’s first case of mad cow surfaced in May 2003, prompting the US government to close the border to Canadian beef imports. Concerns persisted after a Canadian-born cow in Washington state was found in December 2003 to have the disease.

All three cases involved animals from Alberta.