German officials have confirmed that a 10-year-old cow there
was infected with Bovine Spongiform Encephalopathy (BSE, or mad cow’s disease).
It’s the first case in Germany since 2009 and this one is
deemed “atypical”.
The beef cow was slaughtered and its carcass
destroyed, preventing any of its meat from entering the food chain, Germany’s
Ministry of Environment, Health and Consumer Protection said.
The discovery arose during a routine inspection
at the slaughterhouse in the Oder-Spree district of Brandenberg.
Seven offspring have been slaughtered, but the
rest of the 80-animal herd has been allowed to survive after it was determined
that none have been fed animal protein and no animal-origin fertilizers were
applied to the farm’s fields.
“It can therefore be ruled out that other
animals or herds of operation are affected,” German officials say.