EU to change SRM removal?

[Bill]

BEEF NEWS
EU may ease SRM restrictions

by Pete Hisey on 6/8/2005 for Meatingplace.com

The European Commission is considering a recommendation that it relax its rules about removal of specified risk materials (SRMs) from slaughtered cattle by excluding all cattle under 21 months of age from the requirement. The European Food Safety Authority's scientific panel on biological hazards recommended the change last week.

At present, all cattle over 12 months of age must have a laundry list of such materials, ranging from spinal columns and brains to tonsils and eyes, removed at slaughter.

Other changes in regulations may allow European retailers to sell T-bone steaks for the first time since they were banned in 2000 because of the presence of nerve tissue in that cut of beef.

The EFSA decided on the 21-month cutoff after rejecting as unsafe a suggestion that the age be raised to 30 months.

 

[Mike]

That will make the separation of the different SRM's 9 months lower than North America SRM removal.

I read they also may start allowing cattle over 30 months to be allowed in the human food chain.

Of course they have had many more cases but does the age difference in SRM removal need to be different worldwide?

 

[Kathy]

Mike, my understanding is that animals over 30 months are now allowed into the foold chain, providing the SRMs are removed. Prior all of these animals were destroyed and incinerated.

In the UK, you must register your newborn animals within a specific time frame from birth ( I think this is 28 days). If you don't register their birth date (or you're late registering it), the animals must be destroyed and cannot enter the food chain. As you may know, each animal is given its own passport.

 

[PORKER]

All animals are BSE tested that are 30 months and older and now can be used for consumption.This is new for England and DEFRA is running the project.They can export the tested beef to many countrys .All of those animals that were destroyed and incinerated had filled alot of landfil sites.

 

[Mike]

I stand corrected. Please place in the record that I was NOT WRONG......
only.......... Mistaken. :roll: :wink: :lol: