On January 31, 2003, an eight-year-old Black Angus cow was slaughtered on a ranch near Alberta, Canada. At the time the owner thought the cow had a case of pneumonia. Suspecting this, the meat from the animal was sold to a US dog food packing company in Montana and the head was sent to a laboratory for testing.

Three and a half months later it was discovered that the cow actually had Bovine Spongiform Encephalopathy (BSE), commonly known as Mad Cow Disease. When BSE was identified, all the remaining cattle on the ranch were confiscated. The Canadian Ministry of Agriculture ordered the slaughter and testing of the remainder of the herd, and placed two other ranches where the Black Angus cattle may have stayed in quarantine.

Also at that time, the ranches East and West of the original infected ranch were quarantined. This quarantine was later expanded to include some two dozen ranches in the area.

When the Canadian government first announced that the cow had BSE, the US, Japan, Mexico and other importers of Canadian beef banned all beef imports form Canada. The economic shock wave hit hundreds of restaurants in Canada and the US as customers refused to order beef.

Meanwhile, the Canadian government, deeply disturbed over the three and a half months it took to test the cow, has been trying to trace the animal’s origin, which was first thought to have been the Netherlands.

Canadian beef is sold to fast food chains and markets in the US, which usually buys some 70% of Canada’s beef exports. This is said to amount to $2.5 billion.

In a smaller economic blow, the dog food packer has recalled thousands of cans of dog food, even though it is thought that other animals cannot become infected with BSE through eating the meat.

In order to prevent panic among cattle ranchers and feed lot operators throughout Canada, and to soothe fears among consumers that Canadian beef could cause ill health, Prime Minister Jean Chretien stated: “This is one herd, it is not the same as if it (BSE) is spread,” and proceeded to eat a sirloin steak from an Alberta-raised animal.

Scientists recalled that the only other case of BSE reported in Canada was in 1993 in a single bull imported from England and agricultural experts have noted that BSE is not spread through contagion, but rather through contaminated feed.

On the bright side, the Canadian government announced on May 20 that scientists had cleared the original herd that was confiscated and slaughtered for testing, saying that none of the animals tested positive for BSE.

While the tests on the original herd have all proved negative, Dr Brian Evans, chief veterinary officer for the Canadian Food Inspection Agency, said that it is possible that more farms may be quarantined and animals slaughtered for testing.

Of the 471,874 tonnes (1 tonne = 2000 lbs) of beef exported from Canada, the US is the largest customer, taking 338,778 tonnes, followed by Mexico (68,774 tonnes), Japan (21,756 tonnes), South Korea (15,653 tonnes), with the remainder going to other countries.

As of late May, it is believed that the Black Angus cow is the only animal infected, but scientists are being very cautious.

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