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WASHINGTON — The latest U.S. case of mad cow disease was found in a Texas-born animal and not one imported from Canada, U.S. officials confirmed Wednesday.
The beef cow, about 12 years old, was destroyed late last year and never entered the human food supply or animal feed chain, said Dr. John Clifford, chief veterinarian at the U.S. Department of Agriculture
The only other U.S. case, revealed in December 2003, was a Washington state cow imported from Alberta.
Canadian officials and industry groups have said the discovery of mad cow in a home-grown U.S. animal may help Canada's efforts to resume the cattle trade with the United States.
But some caution it's hard to tell how the issue will be treated in two court cases scheduled for July, where a U.S. protectionist ranchers' group will argue Canada's three mad cow cases mean northern herds are unsafe and pose a danger if trade resumes.
U.S. Agriculture Secretary Mike Johanns, who announced last Friday new tests on a suspect cow proved positive, said the case won't stop officials from "aggressively'' pushing the courts to drop the cattle ban.
U.S. officials have been criticized by some beef and consumer groups for not performing more sophisticated screening on the suspect cow last November when initial tests produced conflicting results.
Starting now, two sets of confirmatory tests will be done on such cows in the United States, instead of one.
The latest case was a downer cow, meaning it couldn't walk. It was born before new regulations were imposed in 1997 on cattle feed, thought to be the primary way the disease is spread.
R-CALF United Stockgrowers of America spearheaded the legal challenge that blocked resumption of the Canadian cattle trade in March.
The U.S. government is appealing Montana Judge Richard Cebull's decision to temporarily extend the ban. That case will be heard July 13 in Seattle by the U.S. Court of Appeals.
A separate hearing on the long-term fate of the border will be conducted by Cebull on July 27 in Billings, Mont.
The border has been closed to live cattle since Canada first mad cow case in May 2003. The industry has lost an estimated $7 billion Cdn since.
WASHINGTON — The latest U.S. case of mad cow disease was found in a Texas-born animal and not one imported from Canada, U.S. officials confirmed Wednesday.
The beef cow, about 12 years old, was destroyed late last year and never entered the human food supply or animal feed chain, said Dr. John Clifford, chief veterinarian at the U.S. Department of Agriculture
The only other U.S. case, revealed in December 2003, was a Washington state cow imported from Alberta.
Canadian officials and industry groups have said the discovery of mad cow in a home-grown U.S. animal may help Canada's efforts to resume the cattle trade with the United States.
But some caution it's hard to tell how the issue will be treated in two court cases scheduled for July, where a U.S. protectionist ranchers' group will argue Canada's three mad cow cases mean northern herds are unsafe and pose a danger if trade resumes.
U.S. Agriculture Secretary Mike Johanns, who announced last Friday new tests on a suspect cow proved positive, said the case won't stop officials from "aggressively'' pushing the courts to drop the cattle ban.
U.S. officials have been criticized by some beef and consumer groups for not performing more sophisticated screening on the suspect cow last November when initial tests produced conflicting results.
Starting now, two sets of confirmatory tests will be done on such cows in the United States, instead of one.
The latest case was a downer cow, meaning it couldn't walk. It was born before new regulations were imposed in 1997 on cattle feed, thought to be the primary way the disease is spread.
R-CALF United Stockgrowers of America spearheaded the legal challenge that blocked resumption of the Canadian cattle trade in March.
The U.S. government is appealing Montana Judge Richard Cebull's decision to temporarily extend the ban. That case will be heard July 13 in Seattle by the U.S. Court of Appeals.
A separate hearing on the long-term fate of the border will be conducted by Cebull on July 27 in Billings, Mont.
The border has been closed to live cattle since Canada first mad cow case in May 2003. The industry has lost an estimated $7 billion Cdn since.