FAO Report Says BSE Cases Declining Worldwide

March 24, 2006 -- A report released today by the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) of the United Nations says that cases of bovine spongiform encephalopathy (BSE) are declining worldwide. According to the information, reported cases have dropped 50 percent each year over the past three years.

In 2005, 474 animals died of BSE around the world, compared with 878 in 2004 and 1,646 in 2003, compared with several tens of thousands in 1992, according to data collected by the World Animal Health Organization (OIE).

?It is quite clear that BSE is declining and that the measures introduced to stop the disease are effective. But further success depends on our continuing to apply those measures worldwide,? said Andrew Speedy, an FAO animal production expert.

In the report, the FAO emphasized the importance of using a scientific approach to detect and control the disease in order to ensure that it is eradicated in affected countries and kept out of unaffected ones.

Reprinted from American Meat Institute