Non-contagious mad cow disease in the Netherlands; Quarantine suspension to be implemented on Dutch beef imports

(Seoul = Yonhap News) Reporter Shin Seon-mi = The Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs announced on the 2nd that it would suspend import quarantine for Dutch beef following a report of atypical bovine spongiform encephalopathy (BSE) at a farm in the Netherlands. The Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs confirmed that atypical bovine spongiform encephalopathy had occurred in a dairy cow farm in Zuid-Holland in the southwest of the Netherlands. These cows were discarded and not supplied to food companies. Atypical BSE is a very rare naturally occurring disease, mainly in elderly cattle over 8 years of age, and does not spread to other animals. This differs from formal BSE, which is transmitted through contaminated feed. Accordingly, the World Organization for Animal Health (WOAH) recommends that beef trade be not affected in the case of an atypical BSE outbreak. The Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs has requested epidemiological information about ...