US probes possible third case of mad cow diseaseWASHINGTON, March 11 (Reuters) - The Department of Agriculture is investigating a possible third U.S. case of mad cow disease, officials said on Saturday, in a possible setback after months of work to reopen beef trade with Japan and South Korea.
Results from two definitive tests on the dead cow will be available in four to seven days. The suspect animal was found when a brain sample yielded an "inconclusive" result in a less-accurate rapid-screening test.
John Clifford, the USDA's chief veterinarian, said there was no risk to public health as the carcass did not enter the food chain. The department did not say where the suspect animal was found or provide other details.
Click
here to read the rest of the story.
One of causes of this is that US beef production has changed rather dramatically for the last 20 years or so. Specifically, beef production has become more like industrialized production system. Much of production has been automated and skilled workers have been replaced; unskilled workers just push buttons to process beef nowadays. Unless this needs to change (back to how it was), the problem won't be solved.
