A South Carolina cow has tested positive for mad cow disease at a beef processing facility.
The cow is only the seventh recorded case of mad cow disease, or atypical bovine spongiform encephalopathy, in the United States, according to a report citing the U.S. Department of Agriculture.
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Originating from a herd in Tennessee, the 5-year-old animal was euthanized after displaying symptoms, the Department of Agriculture reported.
“This was an isolated case that occurred. The United States has a robust system of safeguards designed to protect human and animal health against BSE,” Director of Clemson University Livestock Poultry Health and South Carolina State Veterinarian Michael Neault said.
“Those safeguards were successful and prevented entry into the public and animal food supply systems.”
The cow that tested positive was a beef cow that “never entered slaughter channels and at no time presented a risk to the food supply or to human health in the United States,” according to the Department of Agriculture.
It is the first case of the disease in South Carolina, and veterinary officials in the state and Tennessee continue to investigate the incident, the report noted.
“We do not expect any trade impacts as a result of this finding,” the Department of Agriculture said.
Mad cow disease, often contracted through tainted feed containing bovine brain or spinal cord, is always fatal for cows and is believed to be the result of a “prion” protein.
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Weight loss, troubled walking, and unusual gait are common symptoms seen in livestock, according to the Food and Drug Administration, with nervous or violent behavior not being as common.
If humans consume tainted beef products, they can contract a variant of the disease called Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease, according to the report.
