Management of Certain Cattle Origin Material Pursuant to the Substances Prohibited from Use in Animal Food and Feed Final Rule

Management of Certain Cattle Origin Material Pursuant to the Substances Prohibited from Use in Animal Food and Feed Final Rule

On April 25, 2008, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) published a final rule (40 pp, 282K, about PDF) prohibiting the use of certain cattle parts in ALL animal feed, including pet food. The cattle parts that can no longer be used in animal feed, referred to as "cattle material prohibited in animal feed," or "CMPAF," consists primarily of brains and spinal cords from cattle 30 months of age or older, and the entire carcass of dead stock cattle, unless such cattle are shown to be less than 30 months of age or the brains and spinal cords are removed. The new regulation, which was to become effective on April 27, 2009, has been delayed for 60 days to June 26, 2009. After June 26, 2009, the CMPAF can no longer be rendered for animal feed use, and will have to be disposed of by other means (e.g., landfill, composting, incineration and possibly by disposal rendering). It is estimated that alternative disposal will be needed for between 300-350 thousand tons of cattle mortalities annually. In addition, the new rule is expected to divert approximately 15 thousand tons of slaughter by-products from being rendered for animal feed use.

As the effective date nears, questions are being raised by the rendering and waste management industries regarding the characterization and the regulatory status of the CMPAF. Under the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA), a waste is designated as hazardous or non-hazardous. In order for a solid waste to be a hazardous waste it must either be specifically listed or exhibit a characteristic (ignitable, corrosive, reactive, or toxic). Animal mortalities and wastes generated from the slaughter of animals, including CMPAF, are neither listed nor would they likely exhibit a characteristic. Therefore, the CMPAF material would not be a hazardous waste under RCRA, but a solid waste.

Under RCRA, the management of solid waste is under the jurisdiction of state and local governments. In response to the challenges being raised on the disposal of these wastes, the state agricultural agencies should work very closely with the state environmental/solid waste management agencies to ensure the most effective, environmentally safe, and economic disposal of these materials.



http://www.epa.gov/epawaste/nonhaz/municipal/landfill/cattle.htm



Scientific Issues Associated with Designating a Prion as a "Pest" under the Federal Insecticide, Fungicide, and Rodenticide Act (FIFRA), and Related Efficacy Test Methods



http://madcowfeed.blogspot.com/2009/03/scientific-issues-associated-with.html



Thursday, April 9, 2009

Docket No. FDA2002N0031 (formerly Docket No. 2002N0273) RIN 0910AF46 Substances Prohibited From Use in Animal Food or Feed; Final Rule: Proposed



http://madcowfeed.blogspot.com/2009/04/docket-no-fda2002n0031-formerly-docket.html



http://prionunitusaupdate2008.blogspot.com/2009/04/r-calf-and-usa-mad-cow-problem-dont.html#comments



Sunday, April 12, 2009 r-calf and the USA mad cow problem, don't look, don't find, and then blame Canada


http://prionunitusaupdate2008.blogspot.com/2009/04/r-calf-and-usa-mad-cow-problem-dont.html



http://prionunitusaupdate2008.blogspot.com/2009/04/cjd-foundation-sides-with-r-calfers-no.html#comments



----- Original Message -----

From: "Terry S. Singeltary Sr." To: Sent: Sunday, March 19, 2006 3:33 PM Subject: BSE UPDATE ALABAMA March 17, 2006

##################### Bovine Spongiform Encephalopathy #####################

CJD WATCH MESSAGE BOARD TSS BSE UPDATE ALABAMA March 17, 2006 Sun Mar 19, 2006 15:29 70.110.86.250

BSE UPDATE ALABAMA March 17, 2006

MONTGOMERY - Alabama Agriculture & Industries Commissioner Ron Sparks, State Veterinarian Dr. Tony Frazier, and Dr. Ken Angel with the USDA held a press conference today to answer questions about yesterday's exhumation of the remains of the cow that tested positive for BSE.

Federal and state agriculture workers excavated the remains of the animal, which had been buried on the farm and did not enter the animal or human food chain, in accordance with USDA protocols. The carcass was that of a red crossbred beef type cow. An examination of the cow's teeth confirmed that the animal was at least 10 years of age. Samples were taken of the animal and the remaining carcass was transported to one of the department's diagnostic labs for proper disposal. State and Federal staff are continuing the traceback to determine the herd of origin.

One calf was identified by the owner as belonging to the red cow. The calf is approximately 6 weeks old and appeared to be a healthy animal. The calf was transported to a USDA lab where DNA from the calf will be compared to that of the red cow to confirm relation. If confirmed, this would be the first offspring of a BSE diagnosed cow in the United States. Officials today learned that in early 2005 the BSE-positive cow gave birth to another black bull calf. This animal is in the process of being traced.

The cow was first examined by a local veterinarian in late February 2006. After the animal failed to respond to medical attention, it was humanely euthanized. The cattle producer buried the cow at the farm because Alabama Department of Agriculture & Industries regulations require burial of livestock within 24 hours. The producer did not suspect that the cow had BSE. The local veterinarian sent samples of the cow to the Alabama Department of Agriculture & Industries lab system, which was then forwarded to the USDA lab in Athens, GA as part of the routine voluntary surveillance program for BSE testing. After the rapid test for BSE gave an inconclusive result, the samples were sent to Ames, Iowa for a Western Blot test, which gave a positive result. A third test, the immunohistochemistry (IHC) test, was performed this week and also returned positive results for BSE.

The Alabama Department of Agriculture and Industries and the USDA have been encouraging participation in Premises ID Registration as an important step in controlling animal disease. Since starting the program in 2005, over 2,000 premises have been registered in Alabama. For more information on Premises ID Registration call 334-240-7253



http://www.agi.state.al.us/press_releases/bse-update



http://www.agi.state.al.us/press_releases/bse-update?pn=2



ITEM 6 – BARB CASE CLUSTERS

39. Professor John Wilesmith (Defra) updated the committee on the

BSE cases born after the 1996 reinforced mammalian meat and

bone meal ban in the UK (BARB cases). Around 116 BARB cases

had been identified in Great Britain up to 22 November 2005,

mostly through active surveillance. BARB cases had decreased in

successive birth cohorts, from 44 in the 1996/1997 cohort to none

to date in the 2000/2001 cohort. However, 3 BARB cases had

been identified in the 2001/2002 cohort. Backcalculation of the

prevalence of BARB cases indicated a drop from 130 infected

animals per million (95% confidence interval 90-190) in the

1996/1997 cohort to 30 infected animals per million (95%

confidence interval 10-60) in the 1999/2000 cohort. A shift in the

geographical distribution of BSE cases, from the concentration of

pre-1996 BSE cases in Eastern England to a more uniform

14

© SEAC 2005

distribution of BARB cases, had occurred. However, it appeared

that certain post-1996 cohorts had a higher exposure to BSE in

certain areas for limited periods. Several clusters of BARB cases

within herds had been identified (5 pairs, 2 triplets and 1

quadruplet).

40. A triplet of BARB cases in South West Wales had been

investigated in detail. The triplet comprised 2 cases born in

September and October 2001 and a third in May 2002. The

animals born in 2001 were reared outdoors from the spring of 2002

but the animal born in 2002 had been reared indoors. Further

investigation of feeding practices revealed that a new feed bin for

the adult dairy herd had been installed in September 1998. In July

2002 the feed bin was emptied, but not cleaned, and relocated. All

3 BARB cases received feed from the relocated bin. This finding

suggested the hypothesis that the feed bin installed in September

1998 was filled initially with contaminated feed, that remnants of

this feed fell to the bottom of the bin during its relocation, and thus

young animals in the 2001/2002 birth cohort were exposed to

feedstuffs produced in 1998. No adult cattle had been infected

because of the reduced susceptibility to BSE with increasing age.

41. Further investigation of multiple case herds had found no

association of BARB clusters with the closure of feed mills.

42. Professor Wilesmith concluded that there is evidence of a decline

in risk of infection for successive birth cohorts of cattle. The BARB

epidemic is unlikely to be sustained by animals born after 31 July

2000. Feed bins could represent a continued source of occasional

infection and advice to farmers is being formulated to reduce this

risk. There is no evidence for an indigenous source of infection for

the BARB cases.

43. Members considered it encouraging that no other factor, apart from

feed contamination, had been identified as a possible cause of

BARB cases to date. Members commented that this study

suggests that only a small amount of contaminated feed may be

required for infection and that BSE infectivity can survive in the

environment for several years. Professor Wilesmith agreed and

noted that infection caused by small doses of infectious material

was consistent with other studies, and it would appear there is little

dilution of infectivity, if present, in the rendering system.

Additionally it appeared that the infectious agent had survived for 4

years in the feed bin.

44. The Chair thanked Professor Wilesmith for his presentation.

snip...



http://www.seac.gov.uk/minutes/final90.pdf



TSS

#################### https://lists.aegee.org/bse-l.html ####################



back at the ranch with larry, curly, and mo from USDA on BSE



http://www.prwatch.org/node/4541#comment-874



Subject: Prions Adhere to Soil Minerals and Remain Infectious Date: April 14, 2006 at 7:10 am PST

Prions Adhere to Soil Minerals

and Remain Infectious

Christopher J. Johnson1,2, Kristen E. Phillips3, Peter T. Schramm3, Debbie McKenzie2, Judd M. Aiken1,2,

Joel A. Pedersen3,4*

1 Program in Cellular and Molecular Biology, University of Wisconsin Madison, Madison, Wisconsin, United States of America, 2 Department of Animal Health and Biomedical

Sciences, School of Veterinary Medicine, University of Wisconsin Madison, Madison, Wisconsin, United States of America, 3 Molecular and Environmental Toxicology Center,

University of Wisconsin Madison, Madison, Wisconsin, United States of America, 4 Department of Soil Science, University of Wisconsin Madison, Madison, Wisconsin, United

States of America

An unidentified environmental reservoir of infectivity contributes to the natural transmission of prion diseases

(transmissible spongiform encephalopathies [TSEs]) in sheep, deer, and elk. Prion infectivity may enter soil

environments via shedding from diseased animals and decomposition of infected carcasses. Burial of TSE-infected

cattle, sheep, and deer as a means of disposal has resulted in unintentional introduction of prions into subsurface

environments. We examined the potential for soil to serve as a TSE reservoir by studying the interaction of the diseaseassociated

prion protein (PrPSc) with common soil minerals. In this study, we demonstrated substantial PrPSc

adsorption to two clay minerals, quartz, and four whole soil samples. We quantified the PrPSc-binding capacities of

each mineral. Furthermore, we observed that PrPSc desorbed from montmorillonite clay was cleaved at an N-terminal

site and the interaction between PrPSc and Mte was strong, making desorption of the protein difficult. Despite

cleavage and avid binding, PrPSc bound to Mte remained infectious. Results from our study suggest that PrPSc released

into soil environments may be preserved in a bioavailable form, perpetuating prion disease epizootics and exposing

other species to the infectious agent.

Citation: Johnson CJ, Phillips KE, Schramm PT, McKenzie D, Aiken JM, et al. (2006) Prions adhere to soil minerals and remain infectious. PLoS Pathog 2(4): e32. DOI: 10.1371/

journal.ppat.0020032

Introduction

snip...full text;

PLoS Pathogens www.plospathogens.org April 2006 Volume 2 Issue 4 e32 0007

Sorption of Prions to Soil



http://pathogens.plosjournals.org/archive/1553-7374/2/4/pdf/10.1371_journal.ppat.0020032-S.pdf



http://pathogens.plosjournals.org/perlserv/?request=get-pdf&file=10.1371_journal.ppat.0020032-L.pdf



Epidemiology Update March 23, 2006 As of today, 13 locations and 32 movements of cattle have been examined with 27 of those being substantially completed. Additional investigations of locations and herds will continue. In addition, state and federal officials have confirmed that a black bull calf was born in 2005 to the index animal (the red cow). The calf was taken by the owner to a local stockyard in July 2005 where the calf died. The calf was appropriately disposed of in a local landfill and did not enter the human or animal food chain.



http://www.aphis.usda.gov/newsroom/hot_issues/bse/bse_al_epi-update.shtml



The calf was appropriately disposed of in a local landfill and did not enter the human or animal food chain.

well, back at the ranch with larry, curly and mo heading up the USDA et al, what would you expect, nothing less than shoot, shovel and shut the be nice up. no mad cow in USA, feed ban working, no civil war in Iraq either.



http://www.prwatch.org/node/4624/print



http://www.ngpc.state.ne.us/cgi-bin/ultimatebb.cgi?ubb=get_topic;f=12;t=000469



TSS