FDA Unveils Proposal to Fight Mad Cow

[RC]

By LIBBY QUAID Associated Press Writer
The Associated Press - Wednesday, October 05, 2005

WASHINGTON

Seeking to close a gap in the nation's defense against mad cow disease, the Bush administration on Tuesday proposed to eliminate cow brains and spinal cords from feed for all animals, including chickens, pigs and pets.

The government already bans virtually all cattle remains from cattle feed. The new proposal from the Food and Drug Administration "will make an already small risk even smaller," acting FDA Commissioner Andrew von Eschenbach said.

The new proposal would reduce the risk of infection by 90 percent, said Stephen F. Sundlof, director of the FDA's Center for Veterinary Medicine. After a public comment period, the rules should take effect sometime next year, he said.

However, critics said the new proposal falls far short of what FDA had promised 19 months ago, after the nation's first case of mad cow disease was confirmed. At that time, FDA said it would add three other items to the list of materials banned from cattle feed: blood, restaurant plate waste and poultry litter. All are potential pathways for mad cow disease.

>SNIP<

The feed rules are important because the only way cattle are known to get mad cow disease is from eating feed containing contaminated cattle remains.

http://www.in-forum.com/ap/index.cfm?page=view&id=D8D1JNCG0

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They have known about this for over 10 years! Why are they still using these items in cattle feed? This should be a criminal offense.

The loop hole:
The new proposal would ban from livestock feed:

_ Brains and spinal cords of cattle 30 months and older.

_ Brains and spinal cords of all cattle not approved for human consumption.


They will continue with business as usual.

[fasttense]

1. Yeah but only recently have there been victims of mad cow disease here

in the US. So now that we know the disease is here and has killed people in NJ and Idaho, now is the time to shut the barn door. Just so they can't say they didn't try.:sarcasm:

[The Backlash Cometh]

2. The Dems need to get pro-active to determine what Bush knew

and when he knew it. Because if he delayed, even one year, knowing that there was contaminated meat out there, it's as bad as knowing that contaminated blood transfusions result in HIV transmission and doing nothing about it.

[rasputin1952]

3. Whatever possessed these people to thinking that turning cattle

into cannibals in the first place is beyond me. The absurdity of that notion is amazing, and those that even think of putting these parts in feed should be ashamed and accept resposibilty for bringing a horrid disease upon people in any nation.