The Department of Agriculture, Food and Rural Development announced the worst monthly BSE figures ever yesterday. The BSE crisis continues with almost no cattle trading in the Republic.
The Department announced there were 25 cases of the disease confirmed during November. This brought the number of cases since January to 129, making 2000 the worst year on record for the disease.
Co Monaghan recorded eight cases of the disease, Cork had four, Limerick had three, Sligo had two, Meath had also two cases and Leitrim, Donegal, Clare, Carlow, Kerry and Tipperary all had a single case.
The Department of Agriculture confirmed all but six of the 25 cases were found in dairy herds and a spokesman said while the figures appeared high, they covered a period of almost five weeks.
However, the most positive aspect of the announcement was that none of the animals who caught BSE were less than four years old, indicating that technically, the disease could be eradicated in four years.
The oldest victim was 12 years old, one was a nine-year-old, two were eight-year-olds, two were seven years, five were six years old, 11 were five years old and three were four years old.
Since 1998, BSE infection in cows under five years has dropped from 50 per cent to 41 per cent last year. This year, despite the higher figures, the infection rate in younger animals is less than 33 per cent.
Meanwhile, technical talks will be held early tomorrow morning between the Irish delegation, which has travelled to Cairo, and Egyptian technical experts to attempt to reassure them Irish beef is safe.
The Taoiseach, Mr Ahern, spoke to President Hosni Mubarak yesterday evening and said later the president had assured him no further action against Irish meat would be taken pending the outcome of next week's foreign ministers' meeting in Brussels. The Minister for Agriculture, Food and Rural Development, Mr Walsh, will travel to Cairo early next week when he will meet the Deputy Prime Minister, Dr Wali, who is also Minister for Agriculture.
Mr Walsh is expected to support the proposed EU six-month ban on feeding meat and bone meal to pigs and poultry even though Irish officials abstained in a critical vote on the issue at Thursday's meeting of the EU Scientific Committee.
Such a ban will create logistical difficulties for the rendering industry here as Ireland produces 140,000 tonnes of meat and bone meal annually. Over 90 per cent of this is exported to mainland and eastern Europe and Third Countries.
The poultry industry here imposed a voluntary ban on feeding meat and bone meal some time ago. Only 18 commercial pig farmers in the Republic still use the product.