Despite 3d case, U.S. to scale back mad cow testing

Despite 3d case, U.S. to scale back mad cow testing

The reduced surveillance had been in the works for months. The disease was confirmed Monday in Ala.

By Libby Quaid
Associated Press / Philadelphia Inquirer

WASHINGTON – Despite the confirmation of a third case of mad cow disease, the government intends to scale back testing for the brain-wasting disorder blamed for the deaths of more than 150 people in Europe.

The Agriculture Department boosted its surveillance after finding the first case of mad cow disease in the United States in 2003. About 1,000 tests are run daily, up from about 55 daily in 2003.

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Lawmakers want more limits on feed containing cow parts

Lawmakers want more limits on feed containing cow parts

Secrecy measure on animal diseases passes a state Senate committee

By ERIK SCHELZIG
Associated Press / The Tennessean

The discovery of the nation’s third case of mad cow disease in neighboring Alabama has made controlling the ingredients of livestock feed in Tennessee all the more urgent, a state representative argued yesterday.

Rep. Frank Niceley, who has likened Tennessee’s lack of action to “playing Russian roulette” with mad cow disease, has sponsored a bill that would go beyond existing federal regulations by banning all feed containing cattle protein or bone meal made from cattle or other ruminant animals such as sheep.

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Computer program puts byte on farmers’ weed problems

Computer program puts byte on farmers’ weed problems

Steve Leer
Purdue University / Rushville Republican

West Lafayette – Farmers bitten by weeds can “byte” back with a computer program developed, in part, by Purdue University.

WeedSOFT provides producers with tools to identify weeds, select herbicides and set up a customized treatment plan. The software program’s 2006 version offers a handful of new features, including weed management for hay crops.

First-time users can purchase the software for $50, and annual updates are $40.

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Third US mad cow case shows controls are working: Canada

Third US mad cow case shows controls are working: Canada

Yahoo News!
Tue Mar 14, 7:39 PM ET

The discovery of a third US case of mad cow disease shows progress, not laxity, in controlling the international problem, Canada’s Agriculture Minister Chuck Strahl said.

“Based on information provided by officials from the United States Department of Agriculture, (Mondays) confirmation of bovine spongiform encephalopathy (BSE) does not indicate an increased risk associated with American beef and live cattle,” he said.

The discovery of an infected cow in Alabama, the third confirmed case found in the United States since 2003, prevented its meat from entering the human or animal food supply.
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Consumer Groups Urge US Not to Cut Mad Cow Tests

Consumer Groups Urge US Not to Cut Mad Cow Tests

REDORBIT.COM
By Christopher Doering

WASHINGTON (Reuters) – U.S. consumer groups on Tuesday urged the government to continue its enhanced testing program for mad cow disease, saying any move to end or dramatically curb the program would send the wrong message to Americans and U.S. beef importers.

As the Agriculture Department nears a decision on the enhanced surveillance program it adopted after the first U.S. mad cow case, it is gathering input from scientists, industry officials and others.

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Mad Cow Disease Scrutinized

Mad Cow Disease Scrutinized

Geiger, Ala.
Andrea Williams
WTOK-TV

Alabama officials are looking to assure people that the state’s beef supply is safe a day after a case of Mad Cow Disease was confirmed there.

Agriculture officials say the suspect cow never entered the food chain.

Cattle farmers in Alabama say they’re not overly concerned their business is going to be affected.

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EDITORIAL-Mad cow madness

Blog Note: This is an editorial that plays on consumer attitudes by taking a current industry issue and it does not represent the complexity of facts surrounding each of the various situations or actions mentioned in this article. This opinion article is placed on the blog only to bring awareness of the opinion(s) being expressed to the general public.

EDITORIAL-Mad cow madness

LATimes
March, 15 2006

THE SATURATED FAT IN hamburgers is more likely to do the American public harm at this point than the tiny probability of getting the human variant of mad cow disease. But the discovery of a third infected cow in the U.S. this week serves as a reminder that this country is not magically protected against the deadly affliction, partly because federal officials aren’t following their own recommendations for keeping it out of the food supply.

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Safety measures prevent new cases of disease, expert says

Safety measures prevent new cases of disease, expert says

By Tashia Lovell
tashia@athensnews-courier.com
Athens Alabama News-Courier

Limestone County farmer Donna Jo Curtis has been raising cattle all of her life, and she says that she doesn’t worry about mad cow disease.

Mad cow disease—or bovine spongiform encephalopathy—is a neurological disease in cattle.

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Ohio Beef Newsletter Available

Ohio Beef Newsletter Available

The March 15, issue number 478, of the Ohio BEEF Cattle letter is now posted to the web at:

http://fairfield.osu.edu/ag/beef/beefMarc15.html

The quality and intake of colostrum during the first hours of a calf’s life can have significant impact on the lifetime health and productivity of the calf. Read more in this week’s letter.

And, don’t forget, the Ohio Beef Expo begins on Friday, and continues through Sunday.

Articles this week include:

• Calving and Pac-Man – Now is the Time
• Passive Immune Status 24 Hours Post-calving and Long-term Health and Performance of Calves
• NCBA Statement on USDA Announcement regarding Positive BSE Test Result
• Weekly Purcell Agricultural Commodity Market Report

Stan
———-
Stan Smith
Program Assistant, Agriculture
OSU Extension, Fairfield County
831 College Ave., Suite D
Lancaster, OH 43130