DEPARTMENT FOR
ENVIRONMENT, FOOD AND RURAL AFFAIRS News Release (News Release ref
:347/08) issued by COI News Distribution Service. 31 October 2008
The Department of
Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra), the Welsh Assembly
Government and the Food Standards Agency (FSA) have today launched
a joint consultation on proposals to raise the age above which
cattle must be tested for BSE.
Under these proposals, the age above which all cattle slaughtered
for human consumption and all fallen stock must be tested for BSE
would rise to 48 months. The Transmissible Spongiform
Encephalopathy (England) Regulations 2008 and the Transmissible
Spongiform Encephalopathy (Wales) Regulations 2006 would be
amended to administer this change.
The FSA Board and Health Ministers must agree to raise the age
above which all cattle slaughtered for human consumption must be
BSE tested, to 48 months, before this change could be implemented
in the UK.
Comments are invited on any aspect of the proposals. The
consultation is available at: http://www.defra.gov.uk/corporate/consult/bse-testing/index.htm
and closes on 3 December 2008.
The short consultation period is necessary to meet the EU's
expected timetable and allow the possibility of applying these
proposals from 1 January 2009.
Notes to editors
1. Transmissible Spongiform Encephalopathies (TSEs) are fatal,
degenerative brain diseases such as BSE in cattle, scrapie in
sheep and Creutzfeldt-Jakob Disease in humans.
2. In 2007, there were 53 confirmed cases of BSE in Great Britain
compared with over 37,000 clinical cases in 1992. A further
decline in BSE cases is expected in 2008.
3. On 14 October 2008, the EU agreed a draft Commission Decision
which would allow the United Kingdom to amend its BSE surveillance
programme to raise the age above which all healthy slaughtered or
emergency slaughtered cattle and all cattle showing clinical signs
at ante-mortem inspection intended for human consumption and all
fallen stock must be tested, to 48 months. This age was
determined on the basis of opinions from the European Food Safety
Authority (EFSA).
4. BSE remains a notifiable disease and cattle of all ages
reported as suspect clinical cases will continue to be tested.
Controls on specified risk material (SRM) e.g. brains and spinal
cord, which are the key controls to protect public health will
remain in place as will controls on animal feed which are the key
controls to protect animal health. The draft Decision also applies
to the fourteen older EU Member States. The European Parliament
has a one month right of scrutiny before the draft Commission
Decision can be adopted.
5. A specific Impact Assessment (IA) has not been prepared for
this consultation but the IA for the 2007 Responsibility and Cost
Sharing consultation will be updated to reflect the proposed
increase in the testing ages for cattle. It will be placed online shortly.
Public enquiries 08459 335577;
Press notices are available on our website http://www.defra.gov.uk
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