Suspension of U.S. Beef Import

The government halted beef imports from the United States yesterday after a cow there was found to be suspected of having mad cow disease.

The disease, also known as bovine spongiform encephalopathy (BSE), will have a serious impact on Korea. The consumption of beef in general will decrease sharply since the nation is already suffering from bird flu and hog cholera.

The Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry said yesterday the U.S. government reported on Tuesday that a Holstein cow from Washington State tested positive for BSE and that the ministry quarantined certain U.S. beef products already in warehouses.

The measure is tantamount to a de facto prohibition of import. Objects of prohibition are meats, bones, and organs of ruminants such as cows, sheep, goats, and deer. Dairy products including milk are excluded since such products do not carry mad cow disease.

“The U.S. Department of Agriculture sent a sample of the cow to England for additional confirmation. We will decide whether or not to place an entire ban on U.S. beef imports, depending on the outcome of the final test results,” said an official at the Korean Agriculture Ministry.

The ministry also suspended delivery of U.S. beef which is now in warehouses and will prohibit sales of some beef parts such as backbones and guts that include "specified risk materials" (SRM), which are related to the outbreak of mad cow disease.

Korea imported 753 live cattle from the United States for the first time on October 21. The government will strengthen monitoring and test for the disease when the cattle are slaughtered in six months.

The Korea Food & Drug Administration will add the U.S. to the list of countries hit by mad cow disease or that might be hit by the disease.

Now, importers of U.S.-made medicine, cosmetics, and medical equipment should submit an official document made by the U.S. government that proves such products, which include parts of ruminants, are free from mad cow disease.

At present, there are 34 countries on the list including the U.S., EU member nations, Israel, Japan, and Canada.

Japan, Taiwan, Singapore, Malaysia, Thailand, and Australia also imposed bans on U.S. beef.

"A single Holstein cow from Washington State was tested as presumptively positive for BSE or what is widely known as mad cow disease," U.S. Agriculture Secretary Ann Veneman said at a news conference. A tissue sample was being flown by U.S. military jet to an animal disease laboratory in England for additional confirmation, Veneman said.

If the cow is confirmed to have mad cow disease, the U.S. would be the 24th country hit by the disease and the country’s beef export would seriously decrease.

The news conference dealt a blow to relevant companies including hamburger restaurants such McDonald’s, and share price for Tyson Foods, the global beef packer, plunged.

Mad cow disease or BSE is a fatal brain disease of cows and was first reported in England in 1986. Experts say mammalian meat and bone meal fed to cows cause the disease. Eating beef infected with BSE can cause a variant of Creutzfeldt-Jakob Disease (vCJD), commonly known as “human mad cow disease.