Poland's agriculture ministry confirmed the country's first case of mad cow disease today, but the country's chief veterinarian said the case, in the south of the country, was an isolated one.
Poland had been considered a low-risk country for mad cow, which is believed to cause the human brain-wasting disorder Creutzfeldt-Jakob Disease, which has killed more than 100 people in western Europe, mainly Britain.
Poland, an exporter of beef to the European Union and Eastern Europe's largest farm economy, checks all cattle older than 30 months for mad cow disease, or bovine spongiform encephalopathy (BSE).
"There is no cause for panic because after tests were conduced, the (infected) cow was isolated and, along with others from the herd, taken off the market. So consumers are safe," chief veterinarian Mr Piotr Kolodziejczyk told private Radio Zet of the case, in Poland's southern Malopolska region. His office was not immediately reachable for comment or further details.
"BSE is not like (the fast-spreading virus) Ebola or foot-and-mouth disease. So if it's under control, and it is under control in Poland...I think the EU will also approach this situation properly and conclude that things are being handled correctly," he said.