Ministry bans import of beef from Europe

The Ministry of Trade and Industry has with immediate effect banned the importation of beef and cattle feed from Europe.

This follows the outbreak of Mad Cow Disease, known as Bovine Spongiform Encephalopathy (BSE), which affects the human brain by wasting it away and leading to death.

A source at the ministry told the Ghana News Agency (GNA) on Wednesday that the ministry will soon come out with countries that would be exempted from the ban after monitoring the spread of the disease across Europe.

The source said that although cattle feed is hardly imported into the country, the concentrates used by manufacturers to produce other animal feed may be contaminated, hence the ban.

The European Commission on Wednesday proposed a ban on all meat-based animal feed to combat the march of mad cow disease across Europe.

BSE led to the slaughtering of herds of cattle and a temporary ban of British beef exports across the EU.

The disease has now widespread to France and several other European countries.