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7/26/2005
HARKIN ASKS USDA FOR EXPLANATION OF BSE TESTING
WASHINGTON, DC – In a
letter to Agriculture Secretary Mike Johanns, Senator Tom Harkin (D-IA)
and Senator Richard Durban (D-IL) today called on the U.S. Department
of Agriculture (USDA) to explain its failure to fulfill earlier
commitments to expand testing for mad cow disease (BSE). The Senators
expressed concern that USDA has apparently abandoned plans to test
clinically normal, aged cattle as part of its surveillance program
despite public statements to the contrary. Harkin is the ranking
Democrat on the Senate Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition and
Forestry.
“USDA said they would
test 20,000 aged cows that appear healthy,” Harkin said. “I want to
know why these plans were scrapped and why they have failed to publicly
acknowledge this.”
Early in 2004, USDA had
stated that it planned to test 20,000 clinically normal, aged cattle as
part of their expanded testing program. Also, in the FY2005 agriculture
appropriations bill, Congress urged that USDA include this population
of cattle as part of its surveillance program. In other countries, a
small but significant number of clinically normal cattle over thirty
months of age have tested positive for BSE. While USDA had continued to
say it would test these normal appearing older animals, the Department
has not begun this testing to date. Harkin called on USDA to increase
transparency of their decision-making process and to keep the public
fully informed on its BSE surveillance program.
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