Second Czech BSE case this year confirmed
CZECH REPUBLIC - Beef production in the Czech Republic took a blow this week, after a new case of bovine spongiform encephalopathy (BSE) was confirmed in a herd within the country - the second outbreak of its kind this year.

BSE inconclusive not expected to disrupt progress with Japan
US - USDA yesterday announced it had an "inconclusive" result on a rapid test for bovine spongiform encephalopathy (BSE) for a cow at an undisclosed location. Tissue samples have been sent to USDA for confirmatory testing. Results of those tests are not...

Korea Softens Standard for US Beef
KOREA - South Korea is considering allowing in U.S. beef with bones, a move that will result in its easier access to Korean markets. According to officials at the Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry on Monday, it would not be a concession because the...

BSE Infection in Slovenian Cow Officially Confirmed
SLOVENIA - The Austrian national laboratory confirmed that a cow from Slovenia which was slaughtered in Austria's Graz in late October had mad cow disease, the Slovenian Veterinary Administration (VURS) said in a press released on Monday, 6 November....

Japan Reports 30th BSE Case
JAPAN - A 5-year and 4-month-old female cow, which died last week in northern Japan, has tested positive for mad cow disease, the Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries Ministry said Monday. This is the 30th case of confirmed bovine spongiform encephalopathy...

Comment Period for BSE Rule Extended
US - The U.S. Department of Agriculture's Animal and Plant Health Inspection has reopened the comment period for a proposed bovine spongiform encephalopathy rule. Source: WisconsinAgConnection.com

Beef taken off the shelves following BSE testing enquiry
UK - Beef products have been taken off supermarket shelves after a cow was wrongly identified as being under thirty months and was slaughtered without being tested for BSE. Source: Meat Info

Company recalls meat due to breach of BSE safety rules
NORTHERN IRELAND - A Northern Ireland company is recalling thousands of cuts of meat sold in the UK, France, Italy and Spain after a breach of bovine spongiform encephalopathy (BSE) safety procedures allowed an untested cow into the food chain. The...

Japan finds fresh violation of US beef import rules
JAPAN - Japan has said it will ban imports of beef from one US factory for violating safety guidelines against madcow disease reached after a bitter bilateral feud. Faced with threats of sanctions, Japan in July agreed to resume US beef imports on condition...

US Pushing Japan to Change Beef Rules
US - U.S. Agriculture Secretary Mike Johanns said the United States will press Japan to remove the age limit on imports of U.S. beef, hardening its demand from an earlier call for raising the limit to 30 months from the current 20 months. Source:...

Creekstone answers USDA in court over mad cow testing
US - Creekstone Farms Premium Beef has answered the U.S. Department of Agriculture's court documents opposing the company's motion for summary judgment in its lawsuit againstUSDA. Creekstone sued the USDA in March for refusing to allow the Arkansas...

BSE testing: What does the customer want?
US - Last week we looked at the arguments that have been put forward by the USDA, the National Cattleman's Beef Association, and others in support of the USDA action denying Creekstone Farms the right to conduct BSE tests on all of the cattle that are...

Feeders bring U.S. Consolidated sell to Canada
CANADA - For more than a decade now, feedlots have seen their bargaining power chipped away by the growing market power of large packers and retailers. One symptom of this trend has been a declining trend in the number of cattle being sold on the cash...

BSE scare has forced meat industry to look at how it polices itself
UK - The perceived threat to human health from BSE, or mad cow disease, has all but faded into the science fiction of white-coated scientists' fantasies of some sort of Armageddon. It never happened but the meat and livestock industry is still faced...

South Korea to resume US beef imports
UK - South Korea is to resume imports of US beef this week, ending a ban imposed nearly three years ago over mad cow disease. Nine tons of beef from a Kansas-based slaughterhouse will arrive at Incheon International Airport on Monday and will go on...

Finnie in Paris to promote 'rebirth' of Scotch beef
UK - Ross Finnie, Scotland's food minister, is continuing his efforts - "A tough job but someone has to do it," he said recently - to promote red meat exports by attending an international food and drink exhibition in Paris. Speaking yesterday...

End of cheap corn? Sharpen your pencils
US - Dan Childs, ag economist with the Noble Foundation at Ardmore, Okla., says stocker operators have to look harder at supplemental feeding strategies and put a pencil to cost of gains in light of rising corn prices. Childs said United States has...

Scotch beef 'back at top table'
UK - Almost £3 million of Scotch beef has been exported since the export ban was lifted in May, according to latest figures. And Scottish food minister Ross Finnie said on a trip to Paris that exports to markets worldwide will continue to rise....

Irish fly in to raid Perth cattle sales
UK - An Irish airline boss and former Ireland rugby player yesterday capitalised on the recently reopened export market for live cattle from the UK. The international interest helped lift averages by £1,066 to £4,398 for 36 sold, a 72 per...

Vegetables of Mass Destruction - No Chicken Left Behind
US - The government recognizes the need to keep bovine spongiform encephalopathy (BSE), better known as Mad Cow, out of the food chain, and we all expect it to. This involves (among other things) testing animals to make sure none of them carry BSE -...