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| The latest BSE case is in Alberta. Two cases were diagnosed in the region earlier this year |
A 13-year-old beef cow was diagnosed with the disease in the province of Alberta. Two other cases were diagnosed in Alberta earlier this year. Both of them, like this latest one, were found in animals born before Canada implemented in 1997 its ban on feeding cattle ruminant-derived materials. In July this year, the Canadian Food Inspection Agency (CFIA) enhanced the feed ban to prevent potential BSE infectivity from entering the nation's feed system.
CFIA emphasized that no part of this animal had entered the human or animal feed systems. An epidemiological investigation is under way to identify the infected animal's herdmates at birth and the pathways by which it may have become infected.
The agency expects to find more cases over the next decade in its effort to eliminate the disease from the national herd.
"Canada has a suite of robust BSE control measures exceeding the recommended international standards," CFIA said. "This detection confirms the ongoing high level of commitment and stewardship on the part of Canadian cattle producers to food safety and animal health."
CFIA says the latest finding will not affect the country's status as a "controlled-risk" country for BSE, which it was designated earlier this year by the world organization for animal health, the OIE.
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