Durbin Statement Regarding USDA, FDA Announcement on Madcow disease

DURBIN STATEMENT REGARDING USDA, FDA ANNOUNCEMENT ON MADCOW DISEASE

[WASHINGTON, DC] - Today the United States Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) announced several important measures to strengthen our nation's defenses against the spread of bovine spongiform encephalopathy (BSE, or "mad cow disease"). Senator Dick Durbin introduced legislation on January 20, 2004 (S. 2007), to provide better protection against BSE. Following are his comments on today's announcement:
"I applaud FDA's announcement today that it will prohibit BSE risk materials from being used in cosmetics and dietary supplements. Most Americans were not aware that there were loopholes in our nation's prevention system that could put some cosmetics and supplements at risk. This step, which is also included in legislation I introduced in January, will help protect our nation against the spread of BSE in the United States.
"The existing loopholes that allow BSE risk materials to be introduced into animal feed must be closed as well. I am pleased that the FDA is exploring proposals to protect against cross-contamination through animal feed. I hope they will finalize the proposed rule swiftly.
"It has been more than six months since it first became clear that an animal identification system is needed. I urge USDA to act quickly to implement a mandatory animal identification system to ensure that we can effectively and efficiently trace BSE infections back to their source when an incident occurs.
"Our nation's food supply is still the safest in the world and I look forward to working with both the FDA and USDA to improve current BSE safeguards in order to protect America's consumers."