The hard news was that after extensive and varied testing, no way was found for the natural transmission of BSE from cow to calf.

But it has been suggested in the past that five cattle born shortly after the 1996 ban on feeding meat and bone meal – the major source of the disease – had caught it from their dams. This raised the question as to how they did catch it.

The most likely explanation seems to be that the on-farm clean-up after the ban was not as thorough as it should have been. But that would not have made for good headlines.

The BSE researcher suggested cross-contamination of imported vegetable matter feed in ship holds that had previously carried infected meat and bone meal.

Unlikely as this may seem, it is possible and that’s all the reason needed to raise new fears about the safety of beef.

The reality is, however, that the danger to human health is insignificant. In Britain, only cattle under 30-months of age enter the food chain and no BSE has been found in these animals. Elsewhere in Europe, cattle over 30-months entering the food chain are tested for BSE.

The BSE situation in Britain is, in truth, winding down much as anticipated – and the increase in variant CJD has not been as explosive as expected.

The public, however, may not be assured by all this – although what can be done about holds of ocean vessels that may have carried contaminated meat and bone meal five years ago is difficult to imagine.
The hope is the public will recognize this is as a nonevent. And that would be progress.

For CBC commentary, I'm David Walker, an agricultural economist, at Lodge Farm Postwick in Broadland Norfolk, England.