April 27, 2004 Chattanooga Times Free Press (Tennessee)

Mad cow disease -- more properly, bovine spongiform encephalopathy, a degenerative brain disease -- was never a problem in the United States until last year. Then, in December, a single cow in Washington state tested positive for the lethal disease, which can be passed to humans. Though the ill cow was imported from Canada, the diagnosis rattled America's beef industry -- and rightly so.

Though there was no evidence of an outbreak among U.S. cattle, consumer demand across the nation temporarily tumbled. The turmoil in the domestic beef market generated by the scare, mostly resolved now, has been greater overseas. Half a hundred nations, including Japan, America's largest customer, refused to import U.S. beef. That impasse remains because federal officials refuse to address reasonable global concerns about U.S. beef.

Sadly, there's no indication such intransigence is going to change. In fact, recent actions strongly suggest the administration, prompted by beef industry lobbyists, and the United States Department of Agriculture are unwilling to amend the current and outdated rules.

Rather than allow tests of every animal slaughtered as many countries already do, the USDA stands by its meaningless plan to test less than 250,000 of the 35 million cattle sent to market here every year. The agency even refused to allow a major exporter a license to test, at its own expense, every animal the company slaughtered for disease. There could be no reason for that except proof of the ease of such testing, which the beef industry opposes, or fear of what such testing might find.

That doesn't sit well with America's erstwhile customers for beef. Neither does a decision to delay implementation of already approved regulations to control the content of animal feed.

There already are stringent rules to prevent transmission of disease from animals to humans through feed, but they contain loopholes that allow chicken litter, restaurant refuse and cattle blood to be included in cattle feed. Even many cattle producers agree the change is necessary to protect consumers. Still, the sensible new rule, approved in late January, has yet to be put in force.

The result of the government's short-sighted inaction is readily apparent. American ranchers are hemorrhaging money. One study says the beef industry will lose more than $1 billion to other countries this year if rules aren't amended to conform to international demands.

New standards in the cattle industry are needed, and should be forthcoming. Testing every animal before slaughter and safeguarding feed will reassure overseas customers -- and domestic consumers -- that U.S. beef is safe to eat.