BSE affects Canada's OIE status

Canada has confirmed its 17th case of mad cow disease, a finding that will delay any upgrade to its international risk status by one year.

The animal was born in February 2004, making it Canada's latest-born case of bovine spongiform encephalopathy (BSE). The new case pushes back the earliest date for an upgrade to Canada's controlled risk status from the World Organisation for Animal Health (OIE) to 2016, said Ted Haney, president of the Canada Beef Export Federation.

A country cannot apply to upgrade to negligible status sooner than 11 years after the latest-born case of BSE. The process then takes about one year.

Canada, along with many other countries with controlled risk status from the OIE, can ship beef as long as it meets conditions such as disease surveillance. The infected animal, which has been slaughtered, has not affected trade, Haney said.

The Canadian Food Inspection Agency (CFIA) spokeswoman Julie LePage confirmed the 17th case but could not provide details of the new case. The CFIA notified cattle industry officials of the new case late last month, but did not issue a news release, Haney said.