The European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) evaluated the alignment of EU BSE surveillance with revised WOAH Chapter 11.4 provisions. While the WOAH removed atypical BSE from its notifiable list, EU regulations remain strictly focused on maintaining trend analysis and high safety standards for both classical and atypical BSE forms.
- The WOAH case definition no longer includes atypical BSE (H- and L-type) because it is considered a spontaneous, age-related occurrence rather than a contagious threat. Conversely, the EU maintains that testing high-risk cattle is critical for monitoring atypical trends and strain variability. Because classical BSE (C-BSE) is virtually eradicated in Europe, aligning strictly with WOAH provisions primarily affects atypical BSE detection. Estimates suggest a WOAH-aligned system in the EU would detect between zero and five H-BSE cases and zero to four L-BSE cases over a five-year span.
The EFSA Opinion recommends that if the EU adjusts its surveillance rules, it should retain the targeted testing of high-risk cattle populations such as fallen stock and emergency slaughter in older age categories to maintain epidemiological sensitivity.
Regulation (EC) No. 999/2001 governs the EU’s comprehensive BSE monitoring, which requires active testing across large segments of the cattle population. A full alignment with the new WOAH code poses challenges because:
- The EU relies on intensive testing to document its continued disease control effectiveness.
- Testing acts as an essential tool to sustain laboratory proficiency and monitor the biological variability of BSE strains across member states.
For detailed regulatory data and upcoming policy adjustments, review the full EFSA Panel on Animal Health and Welfare (AHAW) Report on BSE surveillance.
