Mad Cow Disease

Mad Cow Disease is in the news again after authorities detected it in one dairy cow in California.  A recent article points out how the beef industry reacted quickly to calm any possible panic.  I described the potential for this kind of panic in my discussion of Global Warming (April 27, 2012) and called for moderation in our response to such news.  This article points out that the rapid response to the mad cow “crisis” was motivated by lessons learned from the pink slime commotion (April 2, 2012) resulting in a public outcry and loss of jobs because the industry misjudged the impact of media reporting on consumer behavior.

Another interesting article appeared immediately following the announcement.  It was intended to calm people – admirable but unusual for the news media – but it was in a subscription-only format on the Internet so I can’t provide a link.  The reporter asked for comments from experts at a large university in the Midwest.  The director of the animal disease diagnostic lab said, “This was one isolated cow in California… It was a dairy cow, but studies have shown that BSE isn't transmitted in milk… [T]his case poses no risk to people or other cattle.”  A professor of agricultural economics emphasized that it was an isolated cow that did not move into the food supply, and added, “I believe it will not have any lasting impact [on the market] unless they find more cows or other animals, or there is enough media attention that somehow motivates groups in the United States to say that U.S. beef is not safe.”

I call attention to the last part of the comment.  Have we become a nation of cattle ourselves - or antelope peacefully grazing on the plain until the least sound of a twig breaking or a rustle of trees sends us into a stampede?  It appears that the moderation that comes from perspective is so lacking that honest people who run legitimate businesses providing valued service to society must always be on guard lest a fiery news headline or the ranting of a well-meaning, but misinformed celebrity shuts them down.  This can only happen when the public behaves with a knee-jerk reaction to every new announcement.  This is not behavior strong in perspective, and it does not serve us well in the long term.