WASHINGTON, DC — Jan. 9, 2004 — With animal feed now thought to be the most likely cause of the recent mad cow cases in North America, the Food Marketing Institute (FMI) is calling for tougher Food and Drug Administration (FDA) authority to regulate the feed currently given to cattle.

“The FDA has used its regulatory authority to ban animal feed that carries the prions that cause bovine spongiform encephalopathy (BSE),” said FMI President and CEO Tim Hammonds. “What the FDA needs now is a stronger law because the current situation demands clearer legal authority. Congress needs to pass a law giving FDA clear and specific authority to prohibit the use of any ingredients that may transmit BSE to cattle through animal feed — and to enforce that ban.”

The current regulatory feed ban was instituted in 1997 under the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act. Canada instituted a similar ban at the same time. The recent cases of mad cow disease were found in animals that were born and fed before the ban was instituted in the U.S. and Canada.

“The feed ban is one of our most powerful weapons to prevent mad cow disease,” said Hammonds, “and, most importantly, to prevent it before there is any chance of exposure to humans. Therefore, Congress should give FDA all the legal tools necessary to make this firewall as strong as possible.”