Scientific Report of the European Food Safety Authority on the Assessment of the Geographical BSE-Risk (GBR) of PARAGUAY

The European Food Safety Authority and its Scientific Expert Working Group on the Assessment of the Geographical Bovine Spongiform Encephalopathy (BSE) Risk (GBR) were asked by the European Commission (EC) to provide an up-to-date scientific report on the GBR in Paraguay, i.e. the likelihood of the presence of one or more cattle being infected with BSE, pre-clinically as well as clinically, in Paraguay. This scientific report addresses the GBR of Paraguay as assessed in 2005 based on data covering the period 1980-2003. Although the stability of the system was very unstable in Paraguay from 1980 until 1998 and unstable from 1999 until 2003, the occurrence of an internal challenge is considered highly unlikely due to the negligible external challenge over the entire period. The risk that BSE-infected cattle entered processing in Paraguay, and were at least partly rendered for feed, due to imported cattle from BSE-risk countries has been negligible throughout the considered period. Also the probability that BSE contaminated material entered the cattle system is seen as being negligible. EFSA concludes that the current GBR level of PARAGUAY is I i.e., it is highly unlikely that domestic cattle are (clinically or pre-clinically) infected with the BSE-agent. As long as no external challenge occurs the GBR will remain low as it is. However, given the stability of the system, any such external challenge could lead to the building up of an internal challenge.