June 1, 2021
Canada has now been officially recognized by the World Organisation for Animal Health (OIE) World Assembly of Delegates as a country with negligible risk for bovine spongiform encephalopathy (BSE). BSE is a progressive, fatal disease of the central nervous system of cattle.
By obtaining this recognition, Canada has achieved the most preferred status under the OIE's three tiered categorization system for evaluating BSE risk.
BSE impacted Canadian trade on several occasions after it was first discovered in Canada in a domestic animal in May 2003. The last case of BSE in Canada was February 2015 in a cow born in March 2009.
Since May 2007, Canada had successfully maintained its OIE controlled risk status for BSE. In July 2020, Canada submitted a dossier seeking recognition as a country presenting a negligible BSE risk status.
The OIE is the science-based standard-setting organization at the international level for animal and veterinary public health. It also serves as the scientific reference body for international trade of animals and animal derived products under the Sanitary and Phyto-sanitary (SPS) Agreement of the World Trade Organization.
The negligible BSE-risk status is an important step to help Canada secure and negotiate access to those countries have that have been holding out for Canadian beef products.