There were 26 cases of BSE recorded during the past month. Ten of the cases were found in nine counties in the past week. They bring the total so far this year to 170, the worst year on record. The cases in the past week were in Longford, Tipperary, Cavan, Meath, Leitrim, Sligo, Cork, Monaghan, and Donegal.
It is now clear this is going to be the worst year ever for BSE in Ireland. For the first ten months there have been 170 cases, 21 more than for all of last year.
Nineteen cases were reported in January, followed by 14 in February. For five months then the cases were in single figures. But in August the figures shot up dramatically. Thirty-five cases were reported in September, and 26 this month.
The Department of Agriculture says this year's figures are up because veterinarians and officials are actively seeking out animals who are ill, but with no obvious symptoms of BSE.
The Department also says that no case has been reported in an animal born after 1996, when tighter controls on animal feeds were introduced.
Despite the BSE figures, the largest importer of Irish beef, Egypt, decided in early October to resume purchases. However, no contracts have yet been signed.
The IFA leader Tom Parlon tonight called on the Minister for Agriculture to get an immediate solution to the certification and import licence issues which are holding up a resumption of the Egyptian trade.
