October 16, 2008

With effect from April, 23 2009, the FDA will ban a series of cattle products from all animal feed and pet food in attempt to prevent the spread of bovine spongiform encephalopathy (BSE).

Federal regulations already prohibit using ruminant protein as part of the feed given to other ruminants. These measures were inaugurated in the US and Canada in 1997, after a mad cow outbreak in the UK.

Other US protections against mad cow disease include a partial ban on slaughtering cattle with weak limbs, which are more likely to be infected with BSE and a requirement that meatpackers remove the spine and brain from all slaughtered animals. These are the body parts most likely to carry mad-cow-causing prions.

The new regulations expand these rules in an attempt to keep BSE prions out of any animal feed, out of awareness that ruminant and non-ruminant feed might contaminate each other during the manufacturing or transport processes or that ruminant might accidentally be fed the wrong kind of feed.

Any animal feed will now be prohibited from containing any materials from a BSE-infected animal; the brain or spinal cord of any cattle aged 30 months or older have not had their spinal cords removed and have not been inspected and approved for human consumption.

Tallow containing more than 0.15 percent insoluble purities or that has been derived from any other prohibited materials and mechanically separated beef derived from any other prohibited materials.