Canadian Cattle ranchers are not happy with the U.S. government agencies blaming them as the source of mad cow disease. Following the discovery of a single case of mad cow disease in Canada last May, the U.S. and other countries banned the importation of Canadian cattle and meats.
In December, when a single case of mad cow disease was found on a dairy ranch in Washington state, many countries banned the importation of U.S. beef products, and the search for the source of the contamination was begun. The U.S. Department of Agriculture discovered through Canadian records that the Holstein cow infected with mad cow disease was imported from Canada as part of an 82 head deal. The search for the remaining cattle in that herd is still under way.
Neil Jahnke who runs 1,200 head near Gouldstown, Saskatchewan, was upset and noted that “My area was settled by Texans and Texan cattle, and cattle have been moving back and forth across the border ever since. Jahnke and other ranchers in the area feel that the land there is an uninterrupted range over which cattle, feed and processed beef move in both directions across the border.
Additionally, they say that it makes very little sense to differentiate between U.S. and Canadian beef. Thus, their anger at the finger pointing at Canada as the source of mad cow disease in a black angus cow and a Holstein from Washington state can be traced to Alberta.
What’s more, they are angry at the efforts by some in the U.S. cattle industry as well as politics trying to distance themselves from the situation and blaming Canada for both cases of mad cow disease. Arno Doerksen, chairman of the Alberta Beef Producers and a rancher, said “there is a real overreaction and hysteria over minimal risk to human health.” Rick Paskal, a rancher and feed lot operator, said, “In reality, the border should be open tomorrow.
Before mad cow was found in the Black Angus cow in Alberta, cattle and feed moved freely across the border. Since then, the U.S. has banned most beef products. While the source of the mad cow disease is still unknown, it is believed that feed containing contaminated animal parts is the main carrier of the disease. Still, no one knows where the feed came from.
