Dáil Éireann Debate, Wednesday - 2 March 2005
102 Ms McManus asked the Minister for Agriculture and Food her views on the implications for this country of the recent discovery of BSE in a goat in France and the confirmation that the condition has now jumped a species; the estimated number of goats here; the steps that are being taken to ensure that BSE does not spread to the Irish goat herd; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [6962/05]
Amharc ar fhreagraUntil recently BSE had never been found under natural circumstances in ruminants other than cattle. Its presence in goats or other ruminants had been viewed as theoretically possible but had not previously been detected. Arising from an EU testing programme, a healthy goat slaughtered in 2002 in France was tested at random for evidence of transmissible spongiform encephalopathy, TSE. Based on the initial positive finding of a TSE which differed from the normal scrapie strain, further scientific studies were carried out, leading to the conclusion by French experts that the brain could be BSE positive.
The EU Commission submitted the data received from the French authorities to the Community Reference Laboratory for TSEs in Weybridge, England for evaluation by an expert panel. The panel completed its evaluation and on 28 January this year the Commission confirmed the presence of BSE in the animal in question.
The European Food Safety Authority, EFSA, has advised that based on current scientific knowledge, milk and products derived from milk are unlikely to present any risk of TSE contamination, if the milk comes from healthy animals. Exclusion of animals with mastitis is considered to reduce the risk. As regards meat, specified risk materials are required to be removed from goats slaughtered at abattoirs.
In the light of the foregoing, and on the basis of advice from EFSA, no changes have been proposed by the Commission in relation to the consumption of milk, cheese or meat from goats. However, EFSA will give further consideration to the meat aspect.
Since BSE was discovered in cattle, an extensive monitoring and surveillance regime for scrapie and BSE has been in place also for sheep and goats throughout the EU. Given this surveillance, the finding of isolated cases would not indicate a widespread problem. The goat population in the EU is small — 12.7 million compared to 89.2 million sheep in 2003. Widespread testing of sheep has been undertaken and all results to date have been negative for BSE.
Following the confirmation of BSE in the goat on the 28 January, the Commission has moved quickly to expand the testing of goats. The EU Standing Committee on the Food Chain and Animal Health agreed on 3 February that over the next six months 176,000 tests will be conducted on healthy animals across the EU and 25,000 on goats that had died on the farm. This intensified regime will set the highest quotas for countries which have large goat populations and where BSE has been detected in cattle.
The goat population in Ireland is estimated at 17,000. A number of samples from goats have been tested here for TSEs recently and all were negative. My Department is compiling a register of goat herds and will in the months ahead be introducing a full identification system.
