Mad Cow Recall Expands; Tyson Shares Still Volatile

Moving to contain both the possible spread of mad-cow disease and its potential economic impact, United States agriculture officials expanded the scope of a beef recall just before the new year and said a team will go to Japan to tout the safety of American beef.

At the same time, the U.S Department of Agriculture stressed its finding that the single case of bovine spongiform encephalopathy, or BSE, in Washington state came from a Canadian-born cow was still preliminary as “discrepancies” remain in the information they have gathered thus far.

The recall originally targeted 10,000 pounds of meat processed at one facility, but upon further investigation, the USDA said that bits and pieces of the diseased cow may have gone to as many as eight states, including Alaska and Idaho and the U.S. territory of Guam.

However, USDA officials also said the risk to consumers is “zero” since the infected parts — brain and spinal cords — would likely not have made it onto American dinner tables.

The government is also rushing a team to Japan to attempt to reassure health and agricultural officials there that American beef is safe. Japan, the largest importer of U.S. beef, was among the first to bar imports after news of the outbreak.

Exports account for 10 percent of the annual American beef output, according to the Dow Jones Business News.

The Dec. 23 announcement that a single case of mad cow had been found in Washington state led a handful of foreign nations to ban imports of American beef. Both events sent cattle futures down and shares of huge processors such as Springdale’s Tyson Foods Inc. into yo-yo mode.

Hamburger giants McDonald’s Corp., Wendy’s International Inc. and Burger King all reported no apparent negative impact on their sales through year’s end.

Shares of several beef-sensitive restaurant companies rose accordingly in trading after investors fled them in late December on initial concern about a possible widespread mad-cow scare.