Mad Cow Prevention Rules Violated by 300 U.S. Companies

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http://www.foe.org/new/releases/1003madcow.html

 

Mad Cow Prevention Rules Violated by 300 U.S. Companies

FDA Asked to Take Action to Protect Public Health and Farmers

 

Washington, D.C. – A total of 300 U.S. companies are in violation of federal

regulations meant to prevent Mad Cow disease, also known as Bovine Spongiform

Encephalopathy (BSE). The data comes from the Food and Drug Administration’s

(FDA) own database of animal feed company inspection records updated this week

for the first time in 17 months The number of companies violating the law is

more than double the number listed by the FDA in April 2002.

 

The regulations are meant to prevent cattle and other ruminant parts from being

fed to cattle and other ruminants, a form of animal cannibalization once

commonly practiced and now considered most likely to spread Mad Cow disease. The

disease is suspected of causing a deadly brain disorder in humans called

Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease. Human symptoms, which may not appear for 20 years,

include hallucinations, loss of memory, dementia, uncontrollable crying or

screaming, and inability to speak or walk. There is no known cure for the

disease which is always fatal.

 

“Just one bad apple in the barrel could put Americans at risk of getting Mad Cow

disease,” said Brent Blackwelder, president of Friends of the Earth, the group

that disclosed the increase in violators as well as numerous lapses in FDA data.

“In addition to the risks posed to consumers, it would cost the U.S. cattle

industry billions to recover, just like it cost the Canadian cattle industry

earlier this year.”

 

As part of its prevention program, the FDA inspects feed companies in the United

States to determine whether they are in compliance with federal Mad Cow

prevention rules, which include keeping feed made with cattle parts separate

from feed for cattle and labeling feed with the banned material. The company

database is maintained by the FDA’s Center for Veterinary Medicine. A new

version was posted at

http://www.fda.gov/cvm/index/bse/RuminantFeedInspections.htm Oct. 7.

 

Of 300 firms in violation of FDA regulations, 173 handle or distribute

prohibited materials. And 32 of these handle both prohibited materials and

ruminant feed, making them the most likely firms to spread Mad Cow disease.

Additionally, 1779 records out of 11,172 have no listing of any action taken by

the FDA after it completed its own inspection.

 

“Given the terrible costs to Canadian farmers of just one mad cow, you would

think that the FDA would have perfected their system by now. If cattle ranchers

and dairy operators want to know where to buy safe feed, the information

available from FDA is insufficient,” said John Kinsman, who owns dairy cattle

and is president of the Wisconsin-based group Family Farm Defenders.

 

A bull in Canada was infected with Mad Cow in May 2003 and an eighth incidence

of Mad Cow was announced in Japan this week. No reports have occurred in the

United States, but only 9 percent of downer cattle (animals that cannot walk,

exhibit symptoms of neurological disease, and/or that die or are killed for

reasons other than routine slaughter) are tested in the United States compared

to 100 percent in the European Union and Japan.

 

“As long as U.S. federal oversight is weaker than that in other nations and

loopholes in Mad Cow prevention regulations exist, the safest way for

individuals to avoid the disease is to eat organic, grass fed beef or know the

farmer who produced it,” continued Kinsman.

 

-end-

 

For a listing of the 300 firms out of compliance and an assessment of the FDA

database of mad cow prevention inspection records, see www.foe.org/factoryfarms.

 

The mission of Family Farm Defenders (FFD) is to create a farmer-controlled and

consumer-oriented food and fiber system, based upon democratically controlled

institutions that empower farmers to speak for and respect themselves in their

quest for social and economic justice. FFD has worked to create opportunities

for farmers to join together in new cooperative endeavors, form a mutual

marketing agency, and forge alliances with consumers through providing high

quality food products while returning a fair price to farmers.

 

Friends of the Earth is the world's largest environmental network with member

groups in 70 countries. The mission of Friends of the Earth is to defend the

environment and champion a healthy and just world.

 

 

 

 

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