Bulls, Bullocks entering foodchain without being tested for BSE

[Beaaware]

The Food Standards Agency have released news/information that at least four bulls & bullocks have entered the food supply that had not been tested for BSE. 'A negative test result is mandatory for cattle slaughtered for human consumption at over 48 months of age.
According to BSE regulations the untested cattle should not have entered the food supply.'

Here are the links to at least four cattle which were not tested for BSE:

www.food.gov.uk/news/newsarchive/2011/nov/csmeats
www.food.gov.uk/news/newsarchive/2011/dec/bullockfoodchain
www.food.gov.uk/news/newsarchive/2011/oct/anglodutch
www.food.gov.uk/news/newsarchive/2011/apr/otmbull

We will never know if these animals were BSE positive, strict regulations rules to protect public health are being broken, BSE is clearly still affecting herds.

I wouldn't worry too much....the actual cases of nvCJD never reached the anticipated epidemic proportions even allowing for the long incubation of nvCJD, we would already have had substantial cases if it was going to be of epidemic proportions. Not that we should relax any regulations, we should remain vigiliant for BSE in cattle and prevent it from getting in the food chain. But since BSE in the 80's I thought that no spinal cord material was allowed for human consumption and this is where the greatest concentrations of BSE reside. I worry more about the possible Europe meltdown TBH

To anyone a bit confused by my post it's BSE in cattle and the human form of the disease is nvCJD

I think everyone should be concerned that 'old' cattle can and are entering the food supply without being tested for BSE, this is recent and the FSA are worried enough to print this information.The reason we have not seen epidemic proportions of deaths is because of the incubation period, also many of the symptons of vCJD are similar to dementia we face epidemic proportions of dementia cases so we are told, WHY, figure that out. Also vCJD is not looked for at autopsy unless the person has been diagnosed whilst alive, so if you have questionable dementia and pass away you will not be tested for vCJD. It is in the interests of our government not to be honest open and transparent where vCJD is concerned.

"we face epidemic proportions of dementia cases so we are told, WHY, figure that out."

For the same reason as cancer cases are rising i.e. we're all living far, far longer and dementia is, sadly, more prevalent in the very old than the very young.

Anyone else read the title as Bulls bollocks?

I agree with OP that it is a serious concern whenever regulations designed to protect health are shown to be flouted.

dementia is becoming more prevelant in younger people, but my point is that unless we test dementia patients for vCJD (the symptons of both diseases are similar) how will we ever know the true numbers of people with vCJD. I met a man whose elderly mother died of vCJD but the hospital insisted they put dementia on her death certificate, he had to fight tooth and nail to have it corrected. There may well be an epidemic of vCJD spread over years within the population after all most of us have been exposed, so we are told, but unless we are all tested at death then nobody is going to know the true numbers affected.

The clinical symptoms of nvCJD are different from those of dementia and in the cluster of cases we seen in the late 80's early 90's the mean age of those inflicted was 35. It is extremely rare for anybody

CJD is not quite the same at vCJD(HUman BSE), vCJD is a man-made lethal disease which human beings are infected with via infected bovine material (meat, gelatine), blood, stainless steel surgical instruments. The symptons of Human BSE are very similar to those of someone suffering from dementia, loss of memory, balance problems, anxiety and many more. The man who I met said his elderly mother was diagnosed with vCJD (Human BSE) but the doctors insisted that 'Dementia' was the cause of her death, how do you understand that? He demanded that the actual cause of her death should be noted on her death certificate, this caused him much grief and anguish and naturally he became suspicious as to why the doctors would want to change the cause of her death. Until vCJD is looked for at autopsy then there is no way of knowing how prevelant this is in the population.
As for a test for human BSE (vCJD) there are tests available now, developed here in the UK by Sir John Collinge & in Japan, other tests (including the filter) have for some reason been rejected by the DOH.
The UK is classed as a high risk nation for Human BSE, millions of us cannot donate our blood or organs overseas, we have been and continue to be exposed to this whether we like it or not, our government could introduce a blood screening test right now, why the delays?
I cannot believe that after 26 years since Human BSE was first publicly acknowledged that we still in 2011 have not introduced a blood test for humans or rigorous testing of our cattle.
Our government seems to be in denial that Human BSE exists, I have met many families who have lost loved ones to vCJD/nvCJD, in fact one parent told me that she was told by medical staff that at least 8 people a month were being diagnosed with vCJD at a specialist hospital in London in 2010.
I have also read that 5000 people have been told by the HPA that they have been exposed to vCJD/CJD via medical procedures and are now deemed at risk.
This really is a serious public health issue.

bakingaddict, not on any kind of crusade about BSE, nothing wrong with informing the general public about serious health issues is there?
As you say you know a lot about this disease so you will no doubt be upto date re this blood test which was in the lancet in February 2011 and in use in May 2011 but only on specific patients, here is the link which I am sure many mums on here will find interesting and informative:

www.prion.ucl.ac.uk/clinic-services/investigations-test/#BloodTest

I am a scientist working in infectious disease so I know all about BSE and nvCJD and as I have said previously there may be common elements with all types of dementia but nvCJD has enough distinguishing features. You point out that in 26 years there isn't a blood test available yet.....well how many people have actually died from nvCJD since the 80's.

Statisically it is a tiny amount, yet you want to introduce full screening for nvCJD which would cost milllions and millions on the NHS for a disease that is barely affecting the population at large...sorry to those families affected but the NHS isn't a bottomless pit to screen 63 million people in the UK for every disease known to humankind. Should we test everyone in the UK for haemorrhagic fever, the incidences of these diseases are probably the same.

Nobody is in denial about nvCJD but while it is only affecting 10's of people in the decades since is was discovered, instead of millions then it will always be a low priority in terms of NHS resources. As a scientist I tend to rely on factual information, not heresay from grieving family members.

I dont think we will ever sing from the same page as your too wrapped up in government/establishment conspiracy to ever look at the facts objectively.
Bye

£40 million a year is spent on a process to remove white blood cells and £200 million a year on synthetic blood-clotting factors to ' minimise' the risk of vCJD transmission via blood.

Millions spent each year to minimise the risks of transmission and it is still possible to infected via blood. A blood test is the only effective solution.

The Medical Research Council (MRC) Prion Unit working with the NHS National Prion Clinic have confirmed in their research that they used blood samples from '21' vCJD patients, I think 21 people available for research with this disease is rather a lot, the article was published in the Lancet Feb 2011, I am assuming the research would have taken place in 2010 when these 21 people with vCJD were still alive.

Professor Azra Ghani of infectious disease epideniology at Londons Imperial College says ' the potential harm from sympton free vCJD carriers is impossible to predict'

Again a blood test is the only effective solution.

Bye