Health and Human Services (HHS) Secretary Tommy Thompson and US Department
of Agriculture (USDA) Secretary Ann Veneman announced on July 9, 2004,
three actions being taken to further strengthen existing safeguards that
protect consumers against the agent that causes bovine spongiform encephalopathy
(BSE, also known as “mad cow disease”).
The actions include:
•
A joint USDA Food Safety and Inspection Service, USDA Animal and Plant
Health Inspection Service and Food and Drug Administration (FDA) notice
asking for public comment on additional preventive actions that are being
considered concerning BSE.
•
An interim final FDA rule that prohibits the use of certain cattle-derived
materials in human food (including dietary supplements) and cosmetics.
These high-risk cattle-derived materials include specified risk materials
that are known to harbor concentrations of the infectious agent for BSE,
such as the brain, skull, eyes and spinal cord of cattle 30 months of
age or older, and a portion of the small intestine and tonsils from all
cattle, regardless of their age. Prohibited high-risk bovine materials
also include material from non-ambulatory, disabled cattle, the small
intestine of all cattle, material from cattle not inspected and passed
for human consumption and mechanically separated beef.
•
A proposed FDA rule on recordkeeping requirements for the interim final
rule relating to this ban.
FDA has reached a preliminary conclusion that it should propose to remove
specified risk materials from all animal feed and is currently working
on a proposal to accomplish this goal. Comments on these issues raised
in the advanced notice of proposed rulemaking are due to FDA next month.
FDA News Release is Available at: http://www.fda.gov/bbs/topics/news/2004/new01084.html
FDA Interim Final Rule:
http://www.fda.gov/OHRMS/DOCKETS/98fr/04-15881.htm
FDA Proposed Rule:
http://www.fda.gov/OHRMS/DOCKETS/98fr/04-15880.htm
FDA/USDA Advance Notice of Proposed Rulemaking: http://www.fda.gov/OHRMS/DOCKETS/98fr/04-15882.htm