Press Release: Commission proposes to strengthen public health protection with proposal to remove specified BSE risk materials from the food chain

In a renewed effort to set out harmonised rules to ensure that tissues likely to be infected with BSE are kept out of the animal and human food chain, the European Commission endorsed a proposal, on 3.5.00, for a Decision to regulate the use of specific risk materials (SRM) presenting a BSE risk. The proposed approach would oblige all Member States to remove certain risk materials. Removal of SRM is the single biggest contribution that can be made to reducing the risk to humans from BSE, and thereby reducing the possibility of human infection by nvCJD.