BSE Beef imported from Canada?

[haypoint]

Illegal importation of old cows from Canada is a serious risk to US Consumers.

By: Matt Goerzen, Brandon Sun

Winnipeg Free Press

February 22, 2012





BRANDON -- A Neepawa veterinarian and the owners of several livestock operations in Neepawa and Brandon face charges of illegally exporting cattle from Canada to the United States between February 2008 and August 2009.



The charges fall under the Health of Animals Act and the Health of Animals Regulations and come after a two-year investigation by the federal Canadian Food Inspection Agency.



Court documents obtained by the Brandon Sun allege possibly hundreds of cattle were illegally and intentionally exported in breach of U.S. and Canadian regulations.



"The wrongful certification of the age of cattle and the export of these animals are serious offences," CFIA area investigation specialist Shirlee Sigurdson said in information used to obtain a search warrant in April 2010. "These actions have the potential to cause serious disruptions to the export of Canadian cattle to the U.S. and to cause widespread harm to the cattle industry."



The search-warrant documents state the CFIA's investigation began in January 2009 after a load of 42 cattle was refused entry to the U.S. at the Emerson border crossing on Jan. 21 that year. A CFIA inspection manager for eastern Manitoba claimed the U.S. Department of Agriculture rejected the load after the discovery of a downer cow on the trailer.



In 2003, the U.S. government banned all imports of Canadian cattle after the discovery of a single cow infected with bovine spongiform encephalopathy (BSE). The U.S. eventually relaxed the ban to allow cattle under the age of 30 months in 2005 and then again in 2007 to animals born after March 1, 1999.



To meet these new import requirements, the Canadian government passed regulations that required all cattle destined for the U.S. to be identified with a unique ear tag and examined by a qualified veterinarian for age, sex and breed verification.



According to the search-warrant documents, the Canadian Cattle Identification Agency tag number on the alleged downer cow suggested the animal would have been 10 months old at the time of export. However, in a statement under oath, Sigurdson notes a report by a Manitoba Agriculture pathologist claimed the teeth were consistent with those of an older animal between 10 and 15 years-plus.