What safety measures are in place to prevent the spread of BSE?
Safety measures have been introduced throughout the EU to prevent the spread of BSE. These measures are based on current scientific knowledge to reduce the risk of BSE. • It is illegal for cattle in the EU to be fed any material that might be infected with the BSE agents such as meat and bone meal. This move is to prevent infectious material being introduced to feed and to prevent uninfected cattle from becoming infected • By law, the parts of cattle that are most likely to be infected with BSE cannot enter the food chain and must be destroyed. In cattle with BSE, the tissues that have been shown to be infectious are the nervous system (including the vertebral column), the eye, the tonsils and the entire intestine (from duodenum to rectum). These organs are referred to as “Specified Risk Material” or SRM. The SRM are removed and destroyed from all cattle slaughtered on age > 12 months. • In EU countries, a ban or testing on all cattle over 30 months old has been put in place by EU Coun
