Back to Animal byproducts

Bovine Spongiform Encephalopathy (BSE)

The opinion of the European Commission's Scientific Steering Committee (SSC) of 27-28 November 2000 on the feeding of animal proteins to ruminants and non-ruminants and measures to minimize the risks of contamination is summarised as follows:

"In view of the arguments that might support continuing feeding of mammalian proteins to non-ruminants and the cross-contamination issue, the SSC recommends that, if recycling of animal material as feed to animals is applied, measures that reduce the risk to recycle [BSE]-infectivity are implemented. These include:

• In any country where the BSE risk [is 'unlikely but not excluded'], no ruminant-derived feed should be fed to ruminants;
• In countries [where] BSE [has been 'confirmed at a higher level'], no ruminant - or other BSE-susceptible animal - derived meat and bone meal should be used as feed for mammalian animals and a total feed ban to all farmed animals and pets should be considered. For the other species (fish and poultry), the recommendations listed in the next paragraph, should apply.

For countries with geographical BSE risk levels [that are 'unlikely but not excluded' or 'likely but not confirmed or confirmed at a lower level'], the following recommendations are valid:

• Only raw materials as listed in the SSC opinion of 24-25 June 1999 on "Fallen stock" are acceptable for recycling;
• All recycled animal protein material should be treated [by autoclaving at] 133° for 20 minutes at 3bars [pressure] or equivalent conditions because this would reduce any infectivity by a factor of at least 1000;
• Appropriate slaughtering methods should be applied, to avoid possible distribution of infectious material to other parts of the body that are subsequently rendered while SRM [Specified Risk Materials] are excluded;
• Not only cross-contamination of ruminant feed with ruminant protein should be avoided but also cross-contamination of non-ruminant feed with high-risk material (SRM). Possibly contaminated materials stored since before a MBM [Meat and Bone Meal] feed ban should be carefully removed.
• A number of additional recommendations are made in the SSC opinion of 17 September 1999 on the risk born by recycling animal by-products as feed with regard to propagating TSE in non-ruminant farmed animals.

Tallow, gelatin, dicalcium phosphate and hydrolyzed proteins should be produced under appropriate conditions, as defined in the SSC opinions, as this will effectively reduce infectivity entering their production;

What precedes implies that the SSC - provided that all the above preventive measures recommended are implemented properly - does not necessarily advocate banning feeding of animal materials to non-ruminant farm animals or pet animals, even in countries were the presence of BSE cannot be excluded, is likely or is confirmed at a lower level. With respect to BSE/TSE matters, the SSC repeatedly stated that its opinions are only valid provided the recommended measures, including those regarding cross-contamination, are properly implemented. Should the risk assessment carried out by an interested country show that this is not the case for a certain period of time, a temporary total MBM feed ban would be the most effective approach to stop the propagation of the disease."

Further information on BSE and other aspects of Animal Feed Safety