Three countries ban Brazilian beef
17/12/2012
In the days following the announcement, three countries, China, South Africa and Japan, banned imports of Brazilian beef.
The cow died in December 2010 on a farm in the state of Paraná. It was initially tested for rabies, known to be present in the region, but tested negative. An initial test in April 2011 for BSE proved negative, but a sample from the animal went to Brazil’s National Agricultural Laboratory in Recife, Pernambuco, for follow-up BSE diagnosis and a routine test in June 2012 came up positive. The large gap between the tests has been explained by a heavy workload at the Recife facility.
The sample was sent for confirmatory diagnosis to the OIE reference laboratory for this disease at Weybridge in the UK, where a test on December 6, 2012, was positive. “The epidemiological investigation shows that the animal’s death was not caused by BSE and suggests that it may be an atypical case of the disease occurring in the oldest animals,” the OIE said. Brazil is still recognised by the OIE as having a negligible BSE risk.
Following the announcements of bans on imports of Brazilian beef in Japan, China and South Africa, an official at the Brazilian ministry of agriculture, José Carlos Vaz, said the government in Brasilia had expected some countries to react in this way, but said he was sure shipments to those markets would begin again within months. “Our efforts to communicate well about what has happened are going well,” he said.
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