Canada's Partial Ban On Us Beef

[Craig Read]

Considering that the Cdn herd and testing IS the problem, i don't recommend that the US adopt Cdn techniques. Be rather foolish wouldn't one say ? The Japanese test every cow that is killed for BSE - and the Brits do likewise and the Brits have the most rigorous testing in Europe. However we need to answer some fundamental questions first on cost-benefits and efficiency and fire regulators and others who do not do their job properly. We need an efficient effective system that does not endanger our trade relations and we need to start firing incompetents, reforming the regulatory agencies and cleaning house.

As well there is lots of dispute about the real link of BSE to human Creutzfeldt Jakob conditions. Many dispute that BSE 'prions' are transmitted via cattle to human agents. So the system of quality control has to be cost effective and not overburdening the market with unnecessary costs and delays.

Humans, so the story goes, allegedly can contract a supposed human-form of mad cow disease, called “new variant Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease” or nvCJD, if they consume prion-containing tissue from an infected cow.

The alleged confirmation of this theory is the 150 or so human deaths attributed to nvCJD in Europe, mostly in the U.K., that have occurred since the mid-1990s following an outbreak of mad cow among British cattle.

Most of the scientists who buy into this theory are also quick to acknowledge that they believe the risk to human health is small but not zero, citing the relatively low number of deaths despite that hundreds of millions of Europeans who consumed millions of pounds of potentially infected British beef since the 1980s.

The prion theory has also been significantly propelled along by the fact that its developer, Dr. Stanley Pruisner  of the University of California at San Francisco, won a Nobel Prize for it in 1997.

Despite Pruisner’s Nobel Prize, however, it has not been scientifically established that prions cause any sort of disease ¯ a fact only reluctantly acknowledged by organizations such as the National Academy of Science’s National Research Council and the National Institutes of Health.

Despite almost 10 years of intense research into the causes and potential ramifications of mad cow disease, the prion theory still does not satisfy the basic scientific test known as Koch’s Postulates or whether a particular microorganism, such as a prion, causes a specific disease, such as mad cow.

source: Steven Milloy JunkScience.com, scholar at the Cato Institute and the author of Junk Science Judo: Self-Defense Against Health Scares and Scams (Cato Institute, 2001).

[udawg]

Considering that the Cdn herd and testing IS the problem, i don't recommend that the US adopt Cdn techniques.  Be rather foolish wouldn't one say ?

Re-read my post Craig. I'm saying WE, meaning Canada, should adopt the new US policies, not the other way around.

[Craig Read]

Well i don't think US practices are the answer either - however since the case IS now Canadian [we said this on dec 26th], Canada must reform its regulatory and safety frameworks.

We need to know:

-Cost per capita

-Cost per head of cattle

-Amount of dollars on admin vs. field testing and safety

-Int'l comparisons

Once we determine how to use our resources effectively we need a reform of the health system and regulatory framework in agriculture.

Will this happen in Canada ? No - like i said before in dec. Canada will spend 2 weeks denying the problem first. Now it will spend 2 months spinning the media and telling people how wonderful its current regulatory framework is.

If I was the US I would invoice Canada $3 billion for lost income.

Then maybe the Cdns will get off their soapboxes and DO something instead of giving mindless chatter......

[Craig Read]

Gee i wonder why the national - socialists are quiet on this issue ?

Could it be that as usual they were wrong. We will just add it to the long list of lib statements and rah rah nationalism that has gone awry.

Well done - at least the socialists are consistent!

[maplesyrup]

OK this is for all you CBC Fans. Like me, that's what all the people here are, right.

When: Today, Sunday, on CBC Radio

Time: Montreal - 4 PM (EST), Vancouver - 1 PM (PST)

Host: Rex Murphy

Show: Cross Country Checkup

Topic: Mad Cow

'Just when hopes were high of getting Canada's beef industry back to normal, another case of BSE has tightened borders and shut down trade. Now Canada's beef producers are waiting to see what can be done to bolster confidence and restore their reputation.

What do you think? What's to be done to save the beef industry?'

Make sure to call the CBC and share your point of view with all your fellow Canadians.

What about the political consequences?

Who thinks it will be an issue in the coming election?

If so, in what way?

Politically who are the winners, and who are the losers?

Edited January 11, 2004 by maplesyrup

[maplesyrup]

Western ranchers poising to pack

This seems like a good approach on the surface but not sure I completely understand the stakes.

I have a question though about Martin's strategy.

When he attacks the US about their beef cattle policies, who brings the note to George Bush for Martin explaining to Bush that this is just to get Canadian voter's support and that he, Martin, doesn't really mean it? I'm serious about this question BTW.

[Cartman]

Will this happen in Canada ? No - like i said before in dec. Canada will spend 2 weeks denying the problem first. Now it will spend 2 months spinning the media and telling people how wonderful its current regulatory framework is.

As an Albertan, I hate to say it, but you are right. We have spent too much time trying to deny the existence of the problem (spinning it into a minor issue) and done little publicly to demonstrate that the problem is truly being solved. The media (CBC especially) should help with this effort. Both levels of gov't better get this solved quick 'cause how can you blame other countries for not wanting our meat products?

[maplesyrup]

What has to be done, that has not already been done?

Not who, but how?

How does it get solved?

[maplesyrup]

For those of you who do not think that BSE is a major problem in North America, think again.

New mad cow case detected in Canada

BSE is a chronic, degenerative disorder affecting the central nervous system of cattle. Since it was first diagnosed in Great Britain in 1986, there have been more than 180,000 cases.

If confirmed, the case could be a devastating blow to an already struggling beef industry that celebrated the U.S. announcement on Wednesday that it was finally reopening its border to most Canadian beef exports.

[maplesyrup]

I heard that the latest animal suspected of having BSE is from BC. Did anyone else hear that?

[maplesyrup]

Apparently it is a 10 year old dairy cow from Alberta.

[shackwacky]

Apparently its all supposition at this point? The test did not come back positive for BSE, that requires further testing. As did the last two non-negative test results.

[maplesyrup]

It is only a matter of time before things really erupt. Of course the initial tests results show positive for BSE - otherwise why the uproar. They are just waiting confirmation from a third test which takes 3-4 days.

North America does not properly test its animals and is now paying the price for scrimping on safety issues.

[shackwacky]

It is only a matter of time before things really erupt.

That doesn't appear to be the case, as both Canadians and US are saying that this case will not change the border plans.

This is a ten year old cow, and no parts of it have entered the food chain. She was born before the feed ban. Cases like this are expected and will be dealt with.

[maplesyrup]

Impact of suspected BSE case downplayed

However, Lehman acknowledged that at least some of the calves from the suspect cow have entered the food or feed chain.

The disease is not transmitted through contact from animal to animal, but there is some scientific evidence to suggest that calves born to cows with BSE may have a greater chance of developing the disease.

You are missing the point. That is like going to the tobacco industry for an opinion on whether or not cigarettes are harmful to one's health. Everything I have heard suggests North American BSE problems are far from over. These preliminary test results tend to confirm my suspicions.

/662

[maplesyrup]

Older Animal Fits Mad Cow Profile - Canada Expert

Odds are high that a 10-year-old Canadian dairy cow suspected of having mad cow disease had the fatal brain-wasting illness, a veterinary expert said on Thursday.

The animal's advanced age and the fact it failed two types of preliminary tests performed at two laboratories increase the chances that the final, definitive test will show it had the disease, said Chris Clark of the University of Saskatchewan's veterinary college.

"Knowing that two different screening tests have been used and both have been repeated, I think if I was a betting man, I would be saying the highly likelihood is that we will see this is a positive," Clark said in an interview.

Clark said he did not want to prejudge the results of the final laboratory test, expected as early as Saturday, but said he would not be surprised by a positive result.

Follow the money folks - this is a multi-billion dollar industry and lots of games are afoot.

[shackwacky]

Clark said the preliminary tests are sensitive and can indicate false positives.

Last month, a U.S. cow suspected of having mad cow disease after two positive screening tests was cleared using the "gold standard" definitive test, he said

.

Syrup, you will recognize the source. Same one you used.

[maplesyrup]

You are too caught up in the BS of the industry - it's all about money. Canadian scientists were fired for speaking out and telling the truth about BSE.

[caesar]

Why are we using old dairy cows as a food source anyhow? There is too much chance of cross contamination with careless farmers or their children whom have feed for other animals. I grew up on a dairy farm and we NEVER ate our old dairy cows. They were taken away for fox feed.

I don't go to the store to buy a steak or roast from a guernsy cow; I want hereford or black angus. Perhaps we need to label the breed of cow on our beef.

[maplesyrup]

It is only a matter of time before things really erupt.

That doesn't appear to be the case, as both Canadians and US are saying that this case will not change the border plans.

This is a ten year old cow, and no parts of it have entered the food chain. She was born before the feed ban. Cases like this are expected and will be dealt with.

Officials recognize mad cow may be here to stay

What kind of moronic thinking would make one believe the press releases of the cattle industry. We need even just a wee bit of critical thinking here. As I have said, and as any independent unbiased research has pointed out:

MAD COW DISEASE IS HERE TO STAY!!!

Time for all of us to become vegetarians.

[caesar]

You are really over reacting. Of course there will be cases of sick cows with assorted diseases. There are probably more cows than people in this country; we put more money into our own health initiatives. If we could completely guarantee that there would be no cows with illnesses than we should be able to cure every health problem of humans, too. That is not happening.

The few cases of mad cow are really being over reacted too. It was a political move on the part of the USA to ban Canadian beef over the esistence of one cow. It was a call to go back to following nature and not to tamper with mother nature by feeding a vegetarian animal meat.

Quit using old dairy cows as a human food source; that is what we produce beef cows for.

Now if they would just quit messing with our vegetables: I would be much happier. An article confirmed that our vegetables are being grown to produce larger and more food but they are now lacking many of the nutrients that natural grown vegetable contained. (only carrotts improved) We older people all can confirm that the taste is missing. Store bought tomatoes are completly tasteless.

[shackwacky]

Why are we using old dairy cows as a food source anyhow? There is too much chance of cross contamination with careless farmers or their children whom have feed for other animals. I grew up on a dairy farm and we NEVER ate our old dairy cows. They were taken away for fox feed.

She wasn't intended for food. She was an old milk cow who got sick one day so they tested her.

[maplesyrup]

Obviously the government agencies are in cahoots with the industry, so of course we will continuously get these glowing accounts about how wonderful everything is. Time to wake up and live in the real world, and stop believing all the absurd industry propaganda.

WHEN IT COMES TO FOOD SAFETY, WHO’S WATCHING THE WATCHDOGS?

“To an alarming degree, the federal agencies that are supposed to be our watchdogs bow to the pressures of the food industry, even when the end results clearly endanger public health,” said Reggie James, director of www.NotInMyFood.org.

In light of a mad cow scare in November – in which an animal tested positive for infection twice before being cleared in a third test – and the confirmed case earlier last December in the state of Washington, James said it is urgent for the Food and Drug Administration to act to keep the disease agent out of animal feed and for the U.S. Department of Agriculture to test more cows annually.

/708

[caesar]

You are starting to sound like chiken little: "the sky is falling, the sky is falling"

Melodramatic to the end eh

[caesar]

She wasn't intended for food. She was an old milk cow who got sick one day so they tested her.

I am not referring to this specific cow; I am talking about ANY old dairy cow. They do put these animals into our food chain. Mainly ground beef, I believe.

Use the healthy ones for pet feed or sell them to the yankees (just kidding about the yankees) Sorry any Americans on site. The devil made me type that,