Mad Cow Disease

U.S. Department of Agriculture officials on Wednesday continued to defend their campaign against the spread of "mad cow" disease -- even as some meat producers worried that newly imposed safety measures did not go far enough to appease foreign buyers. "I think the export market will dictate to us to do more," said Ken Conway, who heads GeneNet, an alliance of beef producers. "We're going to have to make some compromises to make them happy."

State health officials have ordered the recall of beef sold by a local market that has a remote possibility of having been exposed to "mad cow" disease. The A Chau Supermarket at 16042 Magnolia St. sold more than 1,000 pounds of boneless tenderloin and hind shanks from Dec. 19 to Dec. 24 that federal officials said had been processed in the same lot as meat from an infected cow in Washington state. Health officials said the beef should be returned to the market for a refund.

Shares of big U.S. hamburger chains, other restaurant operators and meat processor Tyson Foods Inc. tumbled Tuesday after the disclosure of the first case of "mad-cow" disease in Canada in a decade. At the same time, shares of Hercules, Calif.-based Bio-Rad Laboratories Inc. -- which sells veterinary test kits for the disease -- soared to a record high. Investors, fearful that consumers will shy away from eating beef because of the report, sent McDonald's Corp. shares down $1.21, or 6.

At first, Carol Marie Vanetti had trouble walking. Then came the long pauses in her conversations. One day she became so dizzy a friend called 911. The doctors sent her to UC San Francisco for tests. The diagnosis: The 58-year-old retired Stockton school counselor had Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease, an ailment similar to the "mad cow disease" plaguing cattle in Great Britain. In two weeks, she fell into a coma. In two more weeks, Vanetti was dead.

America's chief diplomat found herself vouching for the purity of U.S. cattle Saturday, wading into a bitter trade dispute that for South Koreans has eclipsed the long-running drama over North Korea's nuclear activity and threatened the government of President Lee Myung-bak. Just one day after the communist North demolished the most visible symbol of its nuclear programs, Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice faced a barrage of questions about the safety of American steaks, chops and burgers.

Cattle can be genetically altered to lack the protein that causes mad cow disease without adverse health effects, a study by scientists at the U.S. Department of Agriculture and Hematech Inc. shows. The findings, published on the website of the journal Nature Biotechnology, suggest that genetic modifications can protect cattle from the disease, potentially eradicating the threat to livestock and the people who eat them or use products made from them.

The U.S. government on Thursday proposed allowing imports of Canadian cattle and meat products from animals born on or after March 1, 1999, increasing shipments that are currently blocked out of concern for mad cow disease. "We previously recognized Canada's comprehensive set of safeguards, and we have now completed a risk assessment confirming that additional animals and products can be safely traded," Agriculture Secretary Mike Johanns said.

Mad cow disease and other related brain disorders may be caused by a virus and not the weird, misshapen proteins, known as prions, that scientists think are responsible, according to a study released Monday. Researchers reported that they found virus-like particles in mouse nerve cells infected with two brain-wasting diseases similar to mad cow disease, but found no traces of the particles in uninfected cells. Lead author Dr.

Cattle that are unable to stand or walk will be permanently banned from the U.S. food supply as part of an effort to prevent the spread of mad cow disease, the government said. The regulation becomes effective Oct. 1, making permanent a temporary policy set in January 2004, shortly after the first U.S. case of mad cow disease was discovered, the U.S. Department of Agriculture said in a statement.

Japan suspended shipments of U.S. beef because of mad cow disease fears, just six weeks after it had lifted a two-year ban. The action was taken after backbone was found in a shipment of veal from New York. Beef is being held at ports awaiting a U.S. report on what happened. Japan had agreed last month to allow boneless beef from animals younger than 21 months. Asian countries believe that bone is a risk for the disease.