Posted on 02/19/2004 9:10:02 PM PST by farmfriend
House committee challenges USDA handling of BSE case
by Brendan O'Neill on 2/19/04 for Meatingplace.com
Facing challenges from a House committee, the Department of Agriculture's claim that the United States' first BSE-infected cow was a downer is now in question.
In a letter to Agriculture Secretary Ann Veneman, lawmakers on the House Government Reform Committee say three eyewitnesses at the Washington state plant where the Holstein was slaughtered on Dec. 9 said the cow appeared healthy, refuting prior reports from USDA.
Committee chairman Tom Davis, R-Va., and Rep. Henry Waxman, D-Calif., questioned the government's BSE testing program for its focus on "downer" cattle—animals that are sick, injured, non-ambulatory or that exhibit symptoms of disease—for testing of bovine spongiform encephalopathy.
"If the new information is accurate, USDA's surveillance system may need to be significantly expanded," wrote Davis and Waxman. "The new information also raises questions about USDA's credibility. The American people need to have confidence in what USDA reports about the safety of the food supply."
Tom Ellestad, manager at Vern's Moses Lake Meats where the cow was slaughtered, says the dairy cow was able to walk.
"The BSE-positive cow was not a downer," he said in an affidavit given to a watchdog group, the Government Accountability Project, which was cited in the lawmakers' letter.
Tissue from the Holstein was sent for testing, according to Ellestad, because Vern's had a contract with USDA allowing samples from healthy animals to be tested.
The infected Holstein was unable to walk at the plant, and a department veterinarian at the plant tagged it as a downer, according to Agriculture Department spokesman Steve Cohen. He said he was not aware of the other USDA contract.
Asked if a case of mistaken identity was possible, Ellestad said, "No."
David Louthan, the man who says he killed the animal, also believes the cow was healthy.
"That was a walking cow," he told the Washington state Legislature's House and Senate agriculture committees during hearings on Feb. 3.
The department's inspector general's office is investigating how the case was handled.
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