Investigators Trace Diseased Cow to Canada

WASHINGTON - The Holstein infected with mad cow disease in Washington state was imported into the United States from Canada about two years ago, federal investigators tentatively concluded Saturday.

Dr. Ron DeHaven, chief veterinarian for the Agriculture Department, said Canadian officials have provided records that indicate the animal was one of a herd of 74 cattle shipped from Alberta, Canada, into this country in August 2001 at Eastport, Idaho.

"These animals were all dairy cattle and entered the U.S. only about two or two-and-a-half years ago, so most of them are still likely alive," DeHaven said.

DeHaven emphasized that the sick cow's presence in that herd does not mean all 74 animals are infected. Investigators are tracking down where the other 73 animals are.

"We feel confident that we are going to be able to determine the whereabouts of most, if not all, of these animals within several days," DeHaven said.

Confirming that the sick cow came from Canada will be crucial for the United States to continue exporting beef because it could retain its disease-free status. The country has lost 90 percent of its exports because of the case, the National Cattlemen's Beef Association estimates, because more than two dozen foreign nations have banned the import of U.S. beef despite claims by U.S. officials that the meat is safe.

Canada found a case of mad cow disease in Alberta in May. The discovery decimated the country's beef industry as its importers cut off trade.

Dr. Brian Evans, chief veterinary officer of the Canadian Food Inspection Agency, said it's premature to draw any conclusions about the cow's origins because Canadian and U.S. records that ostensibly refer to the same cow don't agree on key details.

Based on the Canadian records, the diseased cow was 6 1/2-years-old _ older than U.S. officials had thought, DeHaven said. U.S. papers on the cow said she was 4- or 4 1/2-years-old.

The age is significant because the United States and Canada have banned feed that could be the source of infection since 1997.

Farmers used to feed their animals meal containing tissue from other cattle and livestock to fatten them. Countries have banned such feed because infected tissue _ such as the brain and spinal cord _ could be in the meal...

Brazil and Argentina Expect Rising Beef Sales

The emergence of a case of mad cow disease in the United States this week has created an unparalleled opportunity for Brazil and Argentina, two of the main competitors of the United States in the booming international beef export market, to capture new customers, government and industry officials here say.

Cattle in both countries graze on grass; they are not fed ground-up animal parts that have been used as feed elsewhere, a practice believed to transmit mad cow disease.

Brazil already has the most beef cattle in the world, more than 170 million head, and now anticipates a big rise in exports in 2004. In the first 10 months of this year, Brazil earned $3.3 billion from exports of meat, more than a third of it from beef.

"This is a dramatic situation for the United States, and it is a shame that this has happened," said Brazil's minister of agriculture, Roberto Rodrigues. But, he added, "this can open up markets for Brazil."

Neighboring Argentina, with herds numbering more than 50 million cattle and a long tradition of exports to Europe, is expecting similar benefits, as to a lesser extent is Uruguay, with 10.5 million head. Argentina now earns nearly $1 billion a year from beef sales abroad.


Marcus Vinicius Pratini de Moraes, president of the Brazilia Association of Meat Exporters, estimated that beef exports, which have nearly tripled since 2000, could surge as much as 20 percent in volume and value next year.

"Meat prices to producers, which have fallen 20 to 30 percent because of excess supply, should improve quite a bit next year" because of America's absence from key markets, Mr. de Moraes predicted...