Industry Will Remember Veneman's Role In Dealing With Mad Cow

Posted on January 20, 2009 by Mad Cow

 "We had three Secretaries of Agriculture during the Bush administration. [Anne] Veneman will likely be remembered for her response to bovine spongiform encephalopathy, which was then and is still incredibly damaging to the industry despite the fact that the enhanced testing protocol she initiated eventually exonerated the U.S. cattle herd," said Jeremy Russell, director of communications and government relations, National Meat Association.

Russell made his comments to MEAT & POULTRY, the Business Journal for Meat and Poultry Processors.  Opinions about all three USDA Secretaries (Veneman, Mike Johanns, and Ed Schafer) can be found here.

It was Veneman who on Dec. 23, 2003 announced a cow born in Canada had made its way to Washington State and it carried Bovine spongiform encephalopathy (BSE), or mad cow disease to the United States.  

Veneman today heads up the United Nations Children Fund (UNICEF).


 

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Mother Of vCJD Victim Says There's Been A Mad Cow Cover-Up In UK

Posted on January 12, 2009 by Mad Cow

The United Kingdom's chief adviser on vCJD, the human form of Mad Cow disease, believes it is possible that the UK will experience a second wave of death from the brain-reducing prions in the years ahead.  An estimated 50 to 350 additional vCJD deaths are predicted.

During the first wave of Mad Cow disease in the UK, eating infected beef killed 164 from the 1980s through the early 1990s.

And with the occasional vCJD death, Mad Cow remains a very tender issue for the British, Irish and Scots.  No more so than for freelance journalist Christine Lord, mother of Andrew Black, who died of Mad Cow disease a year ago at age 24. (See Mother and Son in Picture)

Lord recently petitioned Prime Minister Gordon Brown to release confidential government documents addressing the Mad Cow issue.  She claims there has been a cover-up and has mounted a Justice for Andy Campaign.

For more, check out this article in the Belfast Telegraph.

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No Mad Cow Disease In Iowa, Says Widow Of Brain Disease Victim

Posted on January 5, 2009 by Mad Cow

 The Charles City, Iowa man who died on New Year's Eve will go down as a victim of sporadic Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease; and NOT  the variant form of Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease, linked to eating beef infected with bovine spongiform encephalopathy, commonly known as mad cow disease.

The reason we say it will go down that way is because ONLY those cases in people under age 55 are investigated, to ensure that it's not the human variant of mad cow disease.  The deceased is Tom Squier, age 60.

His widow, Paula Squier, 55, of Charles City, told the Cedar Rapids Gazette there is no "mad cow disease" outbreak in Iowa.  She said every test her husband had before he died  indicated it was sporadic Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease.

"There's no risk to anyone else," said state epidemiologist Dr. Patricia Quinlisk. "We've never had a human case of mad cow disease in Iowa."

For more, check this out.

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