Canada confirmed last week its first case of bovine spongiform encephalopathy (BSE) disease since 2011. BSE is a progressive, fatal neurological disease, reports Drovers CattleNetwork.
The Canadian Food Inspection Agency (CFIA) said no part of the animal, a beef cow from Alberta, had reached the human food or animal feed systems.
The CFIA is investigating the discovery to confirm the age of the animal, its history, how it became infected and will focus on the feed supplied to the animal during the first year of its life.
Dave Solverson, president of the Canadian Cattlemen’s Association, said in previous outbreaks there had rarely been more than one infected animal on an individual farm.
It’s very unlikely there will be more cases found,” Solverson added.