The Food and Drug Administration in April issued its final regulation prohibiting certain high-risk materials in food and feed, including all pet food, to beef up safeguards against the transmission of bovine spongiform encephalopathy, or “mad cow” disease.

The final regulation revises the definition for cattle materials prohibited in animal feed to include:

• The entire carcass of BSE-positive cattle.
• The brains and spinal cords from cattle 30 months of age and older.
• The entire carcass of cattle not inspected and passed for human consumption that are 30 months of age or older from which the brains and spinal cords were not effectively removed or otherwise effectively excluded from animal feed.
• Mechanically separated beef and certain tallow that is derived from materials prohibited by the rule.

The final rule becomes effective April 27, 2009. [July 2008 PET AGE]