US agriculture inspector general finds flaws in mad cow test system

0 Comments | AFP, July, 2004

WASHINGTON (AFP) — A new US government screening system to detect mad cow disease will fail to give reliable estimates on the illness's prevalence in US livestock, the US Department of Agriculture's inspector general said in a preliminary report.

The screening program, launched June 1, calls for the testing of up to 220,000 cows by late 2005, according to the report.

But the control system will give "questionable estimates, ... because the testing isn't random and the participation in the program is voluntary," the inspector general's report said. Testing is also limited to animals showing symptoms, the report said.

The USDA also failed to follow its own policy by not testing every slaughterhouse cow showing possible signs of sickness.

Since June 1,...