A BSC disease has been found in Alberta, Agriculture Minister Nate Horner announced Friday..Atypical bovine spongiform encephalopathy (BSE) is a fatal and untreatable brain and nervous-system wasting-disease caused by rogue proteins called prions..“Recently, an older cow in Alberta tested positive for atypical bovine spongiform encephalopathy (BSE). Atypical BSE presents no risk to human health, is not transmissible, and this case is not expected to have market impacts,” said Horner in a release..“The quick discovery of this atypical case proves how effective the Canada and Alberta BSE Surveillance Program is and how dedicated our producers are to eliminating BSE in Canada’s cattle herd..“Atypical BSE spontaneously happens at a rate of about one in one million cattle regardless of how well a producer takes care of their herd. It has been reported six times in the U.S., most recently in 2018, as well as a few other countries.”.As this case was found quickly, officials are hopeful for the quick elimination of BSE in Canada’s cattle herd..The Canadian Food Inspection Agency (CFIA) is leading the response and the Alberta government is providing support where possible with help from industry, producers and veterinary professionals, said Horner.“On Dec. 20, Alberta government and CFIA officials will meet with stakeholders from across the province’s cattle industry to answer questions and reassure them that all levels of government are working together on this case..“The detection of this atypical case is Canada’s first case of BSE in more than six years, which we owe to our cattle producers’ vigilance and the success of surveillance and control measures we’ve implemented across the country over the past 20 years.”.Signs are not seen immediately in cattle, due to the disease’s long incubation period, making the sickness harder to detect..BSE has been linked to a fatal brain disease from human ingestion resulting in variant Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease (vCJD)..Both vCJD and BSE are fatal..Canadian mad cow crisis of 2003-2005 resulted in immediate block of Canadian beef to over 40 countries, changes to slaughter rules, and a beef industry compensation package of up to $460 million..Most recently BSE was found in Alberta in 2015, it was quickly shut down and didn’t cause any serious consequences to the industry..Impacted by the shock of BSE in Canada, Alberta beef exports declined from 2.22 billion in 2002, to 1.2 billion in 2012..As this is Canada’s first case of BSE, officials are hopeful of the industry’s measures in place to control the situation..Ewa Sudyk is a Western Standard Reporter
A BSC disease has been found in Alberta, Agriculture Minister Nate Horner announced Friday..Atypical bovine spongiform encephalopathy (BSE) is a fatal and untreatable brain and nervous-system wasting-disease caused by rogue proteins called prions..“Recently, an older cow in Alberta tested positive for atypical bovine spongiform encephalopathy (BSE). Atypical BSE presents no risk to human health, is not transmissible, and this case is not expected to have market impacts,” said Horner in a release..“The quick discovery of this atypical case proves how effective the Canada and Alberta BSE Surveillance Program is and how dedicated our producers are to eliminating BSE in Canada’s cattle herd..“Atypical BSE spontaneously happens at a rate of about one in one million cattle regardless of how well a producer takes care of their herd. It has been reported six times in the U.S., most recently in 2018, as well as a few other countries.”.As this case was found quickly, officials are hopeful for the quick elimination of BSE in Canada’s cattle herd..The Canadian Food Inspection Agency (CFIA) is leading the response and the Alberta government is providing support where possible with help from industry, producers and veterinary professionals, said Horner.“On Dec. 20, Alberta government and CFIA officials will meet with stakeholders from across the province’s cattle industry to answer questions and reassure them that all levels of government are working together on this case..“The detection of this atypical case is Canada’s first case of BSE in more than six years, which we owe to our cattle producers’ vigilance and the success of surveillance and control measures we’ve implemented across the country over the past 20 years.”.Signs are not seen immediately in cattle, due to the disease’s long incubation period, making the sickness harder to detect..BSE has been linked to a fatal brain disease from human ingestion resulting in variant Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease (vCJD)..Both vCJD and BSE are fatal..Canadian mad cow crisis of 2003-2005 resulted in immediate block of Canadian beef to over 40 countries, changes to slaughter rules, and a beef industry compensation package of up to $460 million..Most recently BSE was found in Alberta in 2015, it was quickly shut down and didn’t cause any serious consequences to the industry..Impacted by the shock of BSE in Canada, Alberta beef exports declined from 2.22 billion in 2002, to 1.2 billion in 2012..As this is Canada’s first case of BSE, officials are hopeful of the industry’s measures in place to control the situation..Ewa Sudyk is a Western Standard Reporter
