Scotland's beef association calls for bookings on mad cow slaughter cash

Scotland's National Beef Association (NBA) said bookings should be made soon to slaughter animals that still qualify for compensation under the Older Cattle Disposal Scheme which was implemented after mad cow crisis during late 1990s.

In March 1996, Stephen Dorrell, Tory health minister at the time, announced the possible link between BSE and the variant CJD in the human population.

The government reaction in 1996 was to decree that no beef from cattle aged over 30 months should be allowed to enter the human food chain. There was also a worldwide export ban on all British beef.

Almost three years ago, the regulations were relaxed, but with one proviso. No cattle born before 1 August, 1996, would ever be declared fit for human consumption, but farmers would be compensated when they sold them through the OCDS.

Kim Haywood, the director of the NBA, said that it is the association's view that pre-August-1996-born cattle will never have any future commercial value, thus it is clearly in the best interest of Scotland farmers to get them booked for disposal.