Swiss to ban all animal meal in feeds on BSE fears 

Reuters World Report 3nov00

BERNE, Switzerland - Switzerland's Federal Veterinary Office said on Friday it was recommending that a ban be put on the use of animal meal in all livestock feed, hoping to wipe out "mad cow" disease in the country. The proposed ban also applies to certain animal fats used in feeds. "Based on consultations, those involved have come to the conclusion that further preventative measures are needed calling for the ban of all meal of animal origin in feeds for farm animals," the veterinary office said in a statement. The veterinary office's recommendation, which goes to the Federal Office, means a ban is almost certain to be imposed. "The ban shall also be applied to so-called extraction fats, which are derived from animal wastes for technical purposes, as well as for feed supplements," it said. So far no people have been found in Switzerland with the human variant of the disease, called Creutzfeldt-Jakob syndrome. But two cows born with mad cow disease after a partial ban on the use of animal meal adopted in May 1996 raised fears that poultry or pork feeds could be contaminated by the disease, called bovine spongiform encephalopathy (BSE) in cattle.