06/14/05 Reaction BSE retest result

American Rancher June 14, 2005 Both USDA and beef industry officials say that positive result for BSE found during a retest of a previously cleared downer animal should not derail efforts to reopen export markets to U.S. beef. Terry Stokes is CEO of the National Cattlemen's Beef Association. Stokes: "This animal is an aged animal. All of the discussions on trade have been with animals under 30 months of age. So we are confident of the systems we have in place, the firewalls we have put in place over time, to ensure the safety of our product from BSE." Japan's vice minister of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries said Monday that Japan will continue procedures to remove its import ban on U.S. beef although a Taiwanese official says if further testing confirms BSE in this case, it will again close its borders to U.S. beef. Bill Bullard of R-CALF says the public should remain confident in the safety of U.S. beef but he says the development clearly demonstrates that USDA has been operating on wishful thinking and assumptions, rather than on sound science. Bullard: "At some point we hope the agency would begin to follow the science because this issue is having a tremendous negative impact on the U.S. cattle industry and we need to get to the bottom of this quickly." Bullard says USDA's decision to send the sample to the international lab in Weybridge, England makes sense as scientists there have had more experience with BSE than the U.S. has. I'm Bob Hoff.