It’s important to know that Japan has had more than 20 cases of mad cow disease, compared with the United States’ mere three cases. Yet Japan has been closed to U.S. beef for most of the past two years. Still, the spin on the latest U.S. case being offered by Kansas Sens. Sam Brownback and Pat Roberts seems a bit much. Brownback: “Catching this case in Alabama should solidify with the Japanese that our system is working in this country. The Japanese need to open the market.”
Posted by Rhonda Holman
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30 Comments
The Japanese are right to keep their markets closed to American beef.
Recently, inspection found neural tissue in a shipment of US beef to Japan.
The rigors of inspection for the beef in America are far less than that we export to Japan.
The concern is PRION infection. In cows it is called Bovine Spongiform Encephapathology. The worry is that it is spread by the feeding of a protein supplement to cows. This protein supplement called “scrapple” is composed of slaughterhouse discards including neural tissue. Neural tissue of cows afflicted with prion caused BSE can infect cows ingesting “scrapple” and can in turn be passed to humans consuming contaminated beef and beef by products.
This is important to me because my father died of the human form of PRION disease. In humans it is called Creutzfelt-Jakob disease and is naturally, passed by inheritance and contaminated surgical instuments in occurrence.
I detail my fathers suffering in a previous and coninuing blog. My father was a victim of the disease as occurs very rarely in humans. It is my hope that no one should suffer this disease from eating diseased beef.
Ok! JR, why is it ok to close the market for beef in Japan because of BSE worries and not closed down the entire beef market in the USA also?
What isn’t safe for Japan, shouldn’t be safe for America right?
I’m not advocating to open the Japan market, that is up to the Japanese. They can do what they want for any reason. Although Japan not wanting to import beef from the USA because of BSE is actually an excuse. They look for any reason to close their market. They’ve been doing that with American products for decades.
But I don’t care. Again! Japan can do what the want. But if you are going to make claims that Japan closing their market because of poor inspection pratices in the beef industry in the USA, you might as well just ban beef in the USA.
Contact your representatives and let them know.
We should test all beef. Period.
That’s what consumers want in Japan and in America.
We don’t get it for one simple reason–the near-monopoly on ag products doesn’t want it.
So much for “capitalism” giving people what they want . . .
It’s not capitalism Proudlib. It’s using government to shut off competition.
There are meat packing plants that would test every cow they slaughter, but the DOA is in the pocket of big packing plants, and they don’t allow it. Using the government as a source of defeating your competition goes against capitalism.
Yeah! Big business is a problem when they use the government for their ends. Capitalism is competition face to face without the threat of government or using any other scrupulous practices.
Look what happens when a sitting president eats tainted beef. Umm, his behavior is due to tainted beef, isn’t it?
Heheheh Brian. I love your posts. I wish you could have been at the picnic.
Two words. Denny Crane
GOOD FOR YOU JOE!
We finally agree on something, and to me something important.
Big Ag (and for that matter big biz in general) have been using government regs, or in this case the lack of them to destroy their competiton by marginilization for years.
On the other current mad cow thread, farmgrrl illustrates one example of this right here in Kansas. It is worth finding and reading.
I’ll admit that I still eat beef. But after watching what PRION disease in humans did up close and personal to my father, I do have my reservations. It chills me to think that this very rare disease could become widespread through consumption of infected beef; just because addressing it cut into the bottomline of the beef industry or forced me to pay another nickel for a hamburger.
I didnt know Denny Crane.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Denny_Crane
Too funny!
JR: “It chills me to think that this very rare disease could become widespread through consumption of infected beef.”
Everyone should remember that this disease doesnt show itself immediately. Except in the cattle market…
True KFG. I hadn’t gotten to that on the other thread yet.I urge everyone to do a search and learn about PRIONS. I captialize all the letters for emphasis. Prions can lay dormant in human neural tissue for years before they begin to do damage. They are also almost impossible to detect. Their presence in humans can currently only be detected by spinal tap.
I may have to start watching that show. To better understand some of our bushy posters here ya know!
I don’t know how the disease is tested for in cattle. Farmgrrl is probably better qualified to speak to that.
The elimination of slaughterhouse waste from cattle feed and eleimination of neural tissue in processed beef would go a long way toward insuring that this disease does not become a widespread problem.
Japan recently stopped importing our beef BECAUSE neural tissue was found. This despite the fact the beef we export to them is far more carefully screened than the beef you eat!
JR, you cant test an animal while it is alive. More scientific posters can answer that question better, but it is kinda like Alzheimers. You have to do “destructive” testing on brain tissue.
Two issues here. One is not feeding cattle the waste or remains of other animals (what part of “cows are vegetarian” do we not understand?) Eating grass fed “organic” meat, not just hormone or antibiotic free meat, is one way to prevent this, but you must KNOW YOUR PRODUCER! It is a matter of integrity.
The other issue is not letting ANY brain or spine tissue into processed food. This is harder to do than the feed issue, but it is what JR means about the Japanese finding neural tissue in u.s. processed meat. It just proved to them that we cant guarentee the safety of our meat. Neither can they.
I’m not sure, but I think the disease can also be transmitted to calves of infected cows. This is why animal tracking legislation and country of origin certification are so important.
Take one guess why big ag and the u.s. government are fighting the country of origin regulations. It isnt just cost. They dont want the infected tissue to be traced back to the u.s.
Not many posts here. I do hope folks are intersted enough to look into this further.
JR, I started following this story when they had the outbreak in England. I can’t imagine how awful the human form is, but I’ve read about it. Just shows how far goverment inspection of the food supply has sunk. I don’t care if it costs an extra $20 to test each carcass. That’s a small price to pay to keep the food supply safe.
Hey X. I do know awful the human form is. I need to get back to that other mad cow link and finish the story of how it destroyed my father.
I meant thread not link
I am very sorry to hear about your dad. It is a terrible disease. Thing like this make me so angry because ALL beef should be tested! My in-laws own a large cattle ranch in Argentina and they are required to test all beef down there.
I regret that I couldn’t meet you at the blogger’s get together this past week but I hope to do so at the next one. I hear that you are a regular Jackie Gleason and that you do a mean CruX impression. :)
V.L.R.B!!
Thanks Ian,
The very best I can do is make a difference on this, cause I have seen it up close. My dad would expect no less of me.
I’m sorry you couldn’t be at the get together too. Good work you are doing down at the border. I’m trolling for ideas as to the next get together over on the open thread. Feel free to chime in.
P.S. I only do my Crux (Blogfart the 1st) impersonation in person. I let him define himself here.
JR’s interpretation of CruX left everybody sucking air for a minute. You could hear a pin drop!
Seemed like a good icebreaker. I hope I didn’t shake anyone up too bad. Nervous laughter was better than an awkward introduction. Especially given my history with Hank and Nathan! I know I shook Farmgirrl up. Glad she didn’t kick my ass cause she thought I was someone else.
“The other issue is not letting ANY brain or spine tissue into processed food”
We have seen the result of human consumption of such deseased tissue – and it is Blogfart the First!
Thanks Ben.
Any attention I can get to this is good.
I was sorry I did not get to speak to you more at the meet up Ben. But while I want to see your facts as to Global warming, maybe Natahn needed to hear them more. When I have the time, I must go read your posts on the global warming thread. They are ……well long. And just this day I’ve been distracted!
Ian, we missed you at the picnic, but you were not forgotten. I look forward to tipping a mojito with you some day, even if we dont agree on the racial issues. I made organic pork with organic green chiles this weekend.
Has anyone heard from Ed here lately? I dont agree with him either, but now I worry about him still being alive!!!
Posted on the wrong thread. Oh well.
I gotta get back to work, folks. . . see you in an indefinite period of time.
Every once in awhile, even Todd Tiahrt is right.
Today, Creekstone Farms, a small meat packing plant is bringing suit against the USDA in the matter of testing all slaughtered beef for mad cow disease.
Creekstone rightly wants to inspect all beef. This puts it at odds with the USDA which is favoring less inspection.
Less inspection is less expense for meat packers. Creekstone wants to do the right thing but is up against larger competition that does not. Already at a disadvantage competitively, Creekstone only wants “big beef” held to the same standards that Creekstone employs.
Todd Tiahrt is backing Creekstone in this effort. Kudos to Todd. Firtst thing I think he has ever done right.
What do you think about the claims that Bountiful Breast Make, http://www.bountifulbreast.com ?They sell Breast Enhancement pills.The ingredients of the pills are:Bovine Ovaries,Pituitary Gland Substance, and Kelp. From Argentinian Glandulars.This company tells me that their product is safe, and have been tested. They have been operating for 10 years now.What do you think about the safety of this product, in regards to contracting CJD?
This product is very safe and you should take it. In fact, all women should. It’s very safe.mmmmmmmmm, bountiful breasts.
Mr. Fleetwood, How do you know it is very safe? Have you just looked at the website, and made your own conclusion>? Or do you know for a fact that it is safe?
Help the homeless down the street and persuade them to look for work