Focus on U.S. Immigration and U.S. Law regulations: The United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS) recently announced a final rule regarding cattle imports. Dr. John Clifford, APHIS Deputy Administrator and Chief Veterinary Officer, stated: "This action aligns our BSE import regulations with international standards, while encouraging other countries to base their trade policies on the actual risk of animals or products carrying the disease. These changes will further demonstrate to our trading partners our commitment to international standards and sound science, which we hope will help open new markets and remove restrictions on U.S. products."
It is important to note that import controls are just one of many interlocking safeguards against BSE. This rule does not change other measures currently in effect in the United States. Regarding animal health, these measures include the U.S. Food and Drug Administration's (FDA) prohibition on the inclusion of ruminant-derived material in ruminant feed. A robust BSE surveillance program monitors the health of the U.S. cattle herd. Measures ensuring the safety of U.S. beef also protect humans, an important one being the prohibition of bovine materials—known as specified risk materials—that have been found to carry BSE agents from the food supply. In recognition of the strength of these measures, the OIE updated the United States' BSE risk classification to "negligible risk" in May 2013.
When this rule takes effect, APHIS will adopt the same criteria and categories used by the OIE to determine a country's BSE risk status. APHIS will determine its import policy for a country based on the risk category determined by the OIE's risk assessment for that country. The rule also allows APHIS to conduct its own assessments when necessary, such as when the OIE has not yet classified a country's BSE risk, while requiring APHIS to use standards equivalent to those used by the OIE in conducting risk assessments.
