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By Alan Caruba
June 29, 2005
Just what is the level of risk
that you might get Mad Cow Disease? Zero! That’s
right, the odds of contracting Bovine Spongiform Encephalopathy
(BSE) come as close to non-existent as possible. You
have a far better chance of being hit by a bolt of lightning.
Dr. Ron DeHaven, the United States Department
of Agriculture’s chief veterinarian says, "Beef
is absolutely safe to eat." His colleague, Dr.
Ken Peterson of the USDA Food Safety Inspection Service
says, "Clinical studies tell us there’s virtually
zero risk."
That’s why Mad Cows don’t
scare me, but that doesn’t stop groups with names
like the Center for Food Safety, the Center for Science
in the Public Interest, Friends of the Earth, People
for the Ethical Treatment of Animals, and more than
a dozen others from flooding the media with claims that
hamburgers, steaks, veal, and all those other delicious
beef products are too dangerous to eat.
Aside from the scare campaigns intended
to frighten everyone, the economy suffers when other
nations refuse to import US beef products. An article
in a June edition of the Houston Chronicle noted that
the USDA’s delays on the announcement of recent
test results, typical of any huge bureaucracy, "sent
cattle prices falling and, of course, raised new questions
about its ability to protect the public."
It doesn’t take much to scare Americans,
but the real story of the USDA’s and the US Food
and Drug Administration’s response to a single
detected case of BSE back in December 2003 actually
demonstrates what a great job they have done in protecting
Americans. That cow never entered the food supply.
The system of multiple firewalls maintained
by Federal agencies protects Americans from possible
exposure to BSE. What made a lot of news was the decision
to recall a lot of meat at that time. None of it represented
a risk, but no risk was deemed better than even the
possibility of any risk. Given the often-wasteful nature
of other government agencies, that’s what your
tax dollars pay for.
Back in 1998 the USDA commissioned the
Harvard Center for Risk Analysis to conduct an evaluation
of the US regulatory measures to prevent the spread
of BSE into our food supply. The Harvard study concluded
that, even if BSE slipped into the country, the preventive
measures currently in place insured that it would be
extremely unlikely that BSE could become established
in the US.
Since 1998 the USDA has banned imports
of live ruminants such as cattle, sheep and goats, and
most products from these animals from countries known
to have BSE. The subsequent ban on US beef products
by these nations appears to be more an act of retribution
than safety.
In 1997, the FDA prohibited, with some
exceptions, the use of protein derived from mammalian
tissues in animal feed intended for cows and other ruminants.
And, on January 8, 2004, the USDA’s
Food Safety and Inspection Service issued new rules
to further enhance safeguards against BSE.
Keep in mind, the US case of BSE found
in December 2003 was an imported Canadian cow. Recently,
in mid-June, reports that "an older animal tested
positive" reignited fears that foreign countries
would use this as an excuse to shun US beef. This animal,
first tested in November 2004, did not enter the human
food or livestock feed supply. Since June 1, 2004, USDA
has tested almost 400,000 high-risk cattle for BSE and
found no cases. On June 24, the Department of Agriculture
announced the confirmation that the animal tested positive,
but this is irrelevant because of the safeguards in
place that protect both humans and animals from exposure
to BSE.
Why aren’t you reading or hearing
of these results? Because the mainstream media is salivating
while waiting around to write about Mad Cow disease.
Bad news sells newspapers and increases ratings, but
the good news is that Americans can enjoy beef products.
That, of course, didn’t stop the
scaremongers and occasional politician from putting
out their news releases in a blizzard of demands for
greater safety. If you want to do a little research
on your own, I recommend a visit to http://www.mad-cow-facts.com.
You are at higher risk of death driving
to the supermarket to fill your cart with some of the
finest beef produced anywhere in the world than ever
getting Mad Cow disease.
When one contemplates how filled with
risk life is, it is wonderful to contemplate that life
expectancy in America these days exceeds 76 years of
age. More Americans are living longer than ever in the
history of this nation. Part of the reason is that meat
is good for you. Your body benefits in many ways from
eating meat and your entire digestive system is designed
to eat meat.
And America has the safest supply of beef
products than anywhere else in the world. A variety
of federal agencies insure that safety and so do the
cattle producers who utilize every safety measure to
protect their herds.
That’s why Mad Cows don’t
scare me and shouldn’t scare you.
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