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BSE post from Janet

I realize this is getting a little off-topic from gardening but I think it 
valid enough to discuss here.
I don't want to be an alarmist, but I think there are some safety issues at 
hand most of us are unaware of.
Janet has a lot of great information being passed along. This topic came up 
on another list and some are quite sure that 'mad cow' has entered the US 
and is being kept hushed up by the USDA.  I'm relieved to see the agency is 
'on top' of this issue.

I have often wondered about the consequences of feeding urea-based feeds to 
cattle, and tho this is not a known source, it still could produce 
unreliable long range results. I have utilized a number of cattle products 
in my dairy goat operation such as the occasional calf 'starter' pill, and 
cow colostrum and supplemental powdered milk for the nursing kids. (Not to 
mention foraging for pasture manure from my own cattle herd for manure teas 
for my own vegetable garden.) As goats may be poisoned by urea feedstuffs, I 
try to make certain none is allowed to the cattle either. However, it's such 
an inexpensive way to boost wintertime protein feeds, large cattle producers 
will not be giving it up without a fight.

As Janet mentioned, the information tag that lists protein sources and other 
base ingredients is unclear on many products so I have begun avoiding using 
secondary cattle resources. (or trying to avoid them....)
 However, when you think of all the byproducts from that industry, it's 
going to be fairly difficult to monitor the long range outcome should we 
become affected by a bovine outbreak of any kind.
 (For example;  the cheesemaking industry relies heavily on rennet which is 
taken from milk-fed calves.) "Cooking" rennet destroys necessary enzymes (I 
think), so there is one problem.
I would THINK that the USDA would be strict (more so now) on the meat 
processors and what is disposed of by them. When I had a group of wethers 
processed recently, I was surprised that I did not have to pay more for the 
disposal fees.  The processors I queried all stated that regulations have 
not increased in their management practices as of yet.

martha
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