HC Deb 20 November 1997 vol 301 c276W
Mr. Gordon Prentice

To ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food what data he has collated concerning the existence of BSE in the United States cattle herd; and if he will make a statement.[16683]

Mr. Rooker

No cases of BSE in cattle have been reported by the USA authorities to the Office International des Epizooties (OIE). The USA has carried out detailed risk assessments which have been made available to us. It has traced, investigated and destroyed cattle imported from the UK and initiated surveillance for BSE in cattle presented for slaughter, concentrating particularly on adult animals with neurological symptoms.

The demography of the USA cattle and sheep populations, the regional nature of its distribution of rendered protein and its low incidence of scrapie suggest that the risk from BSE in the USA is low. Nevertheless, the presence of three transmissible spongiform encephalopathies, namely scrapie in sheep, CWD (Chronic Wasting Disease) in elk and mule-deer and more rarely THE (Transmissible Mink Encephalopathy), indicate that the risk cannot be zero.