Suspect Animal Tests Negative for Mad Cow-USDA

A suspect animal has tested negative for mad cow disease, the U.S. Department of Agriculture said on Friday.

A suspect animal has tested negative for mad cow disease, the U.S. Department of Agriculture said on Friday. For the second time this week, USDA announced that an inconclusive test for mad cow disease ended up being negative after more exhaustive laboratory testing. With this test result, the United States has not had a positive case of mad cow disease since Dec. 23, when the first domestic case was discovered. “At approximately 2:45 EDT today (1845 GMT), we were notified by the USDA National Veterinary Services Laboratories (NVSL) in Ames, Iowa, that the inconclusive screening test sample reported on June 29, tested negative for BSE upon confirmatory testing,” said USDA chief veterinarian John Clifford. Cattle futures trading has been volatile this week in reaction to the two inconclusive tests. On June 1, USDA significantly expanded its testing for mad cow disease. Last year, the federal government tested about 20,000 head of cattle, out of about 35 million slaughtered, for mad cow disease. With the more ambitious program, USDA hopes that by the end of 2005 it will have tested at least 220,000 animals in an attempt to get a better understanding of the scope of infection in the United States.(Source: Reuters Health, July 2004)