Japan confirms 13th mad cow case

[SoCalDem]

http://news.xinhuanet.com/english/2004-09/22/content_2009399.htm


Japan confirms 13th mad cow case
Xinhua - 6 hours ago
Japan confirms 13th mad cow case

www.chinaview.cn 2004-09-22 23:25:12

TOKYO, Sept. 22 (Xinhuanet) -- Japan confirmed its 13th mad cow disease on Wednesday, said the health ministry, as the nation is in short of beef supply for the ban of imports from the United States.

An 8-year-old slaughtered Holstein cow at a meat distribution center in western Nara Prefecture was confirmed to have contracted the disease after it tested positive on Tuesday. The cow was born in Hokkaido in February 1996, the same year a majority of infected cows were born. It is the oldest of all the confirmed cases in Japan of bovine spongiform encephalopathy, or mad cow disease.

The new outbreak could cast a shadow on Japan's beef consumption as the nation had banned the imports of US beef after a similar case was found there at the end of last year. The United States used to be Japan's major beef supplier. The two countries are in tense discussion to resume the trade.

Many fast food dealers here had shut down supply of beef courses or resorted to imports from Australia. The Health, Labor and Welfare Ministry and the Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries Ministry are investigating how the cow got infected.

Of the 13 cows, 10 were born between the end of 1995 and the spring of 1996. The source of infection is believed to be cows imported from Britain in 1980s or meat-and-bone meal imported from Italy before 1990.

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[Parche]

1. mad cow

US confirms 1 mad cow still at 1600 Pennsylvania ave