Dáil Éireann debate -
Tuesday, 30 Jan 2001

Vol. 529 No. 1

Written Answers. - BSE Incidence.

Nora Owen

Question:

387 Mrs. Owen asked the Minister for Agriculture, Food and Rural Development the figures for BSE incidence over the years in each breed of cattle; and if there is evidence that more cases have been identified in animals bred for the dairy industry than in animals raised for beef production. [1507/01]

Minister for Agriculture, Food and Rural Development (Mr. Walsh)

The following table shows the incidence of BSE in each of the breeds of cattle up to Friday, 26 January 2001:

Breed Distribution

Friesian	461
Hereford	36
Simmental	33
Charolais	21
Limousin	19
Aberdeen Angus	14
Belgian Blue	5
Holstein	3
Shorthorn	4
Montbeliard	2
Musse Rhine Isse	1
Total	599 Cases

The following table shows the breakdown by herd type:

Herd Type	Number
Dairy Herds	417
Suckler Herds	152
Mixed Dairy (Dairy and Suckler Herds)	21
A.I. Station	1

The likely explanation for the higher numbers of cases in dairy herds is that such animals are generally more intensively reared and were therefore, more likely to have been exposed to contaminated feed in the years prior to 1996, in which cross contamination in feed mills was possible. Controls were strengthened in October 1996 to prohibit feed mills producing ruminant feed from producing feed for any other species, using meat and bone meal, in order to prevent cross contamination of feed. A comprehensive ban on the use of mammalian meat and bone meal for feeding to farmed animals is in place since 1 January 2001.