BSE Regulations Brings Recalls Of Fresh Cow Heads
In what may be a sign of the level of policing the U.S. Department of Agriclture will do to keep American beef's nose clean in South Korea, there are two small recalls of "fresh cattle heads" underway.
The concern, said to be a low health risk, is the cattle heads may contain "specified risk materials" (SRM) meaning tissue known to contain the infective agent in cattle infected with Bovine Spongiform Encephalopathy (BSE) or Mad Cow Disease.
About 2,850 pounds of fresh cattle heads are in recall by Beltex Corp., a Fort Worth, TX concern doing business as Frontier Meats.
The other is a recall of just 120 pounds of fresh cattle heads with tonsils not completely removed by Trimble, MO-based Paradise Locker Meats. Food Safety & Inspection Service (FSIS) regulations require removal of tonsils from cattle of all
ages due to BSE concerns.
SRMs are tissues that are known to contain the infective agent in cattle infected with BSE, as well as materials that are closely associated with these potentially infective tissues. Therefore, FSIS prohibits SRMs from use as human food to minimize potential human exposure to the BSE agent.
