Japan Confirms 21st Case of Mad Cow Disease
Date: 12-Dec-05
Country: JAPAN
The meat and intestines from the slaughtered cow will be destroyed and will not enter the food supply, the ministry said in a statement dated Dec. 10.
The cow was born in February 2000, which is before Japan banned the use of meat-and-bone (MBM) meal as feed for all animals, the ministry said. MBM is thought to cause mad cow disease.
Japan adopted a policy of testing all cattle for mad cow in October 2001 after it discovered its first BSE case in a domestic herd.
Although the government dropped the universal testing policy in August, local governments continue to test all cattle.
The latest BSE case in Japan comes just ahead of a widely expected decision by Tokyo to lift a two-year ban on US beef imports that was imposed after the discovery of a BSE case in the United States.
Japanese media have reported that Japan would officially announce an easing of the ban on Monday.
