Bovine Spongiform Encephalopathy, usually referred to as the mad cow disease, emerged in the UK in the early 1990s.

A recent study has nullified the risk of an Australian consumer eating imported beef, infected with BSE, to get affected.

A link between BSE in cattle and the human variant known as CJD, Creutzfeldt Jakob Disease, has been pointed by the scientific evidence.

The incubation period of BSE, which has been found to be two-and-a-half to six years, implies that the peak of the disease occurs in cattle which are four to five years old.

Certain precautionary practices include prohibition of disabled or sick cattle from entering the human food supply chain and restriction of the mechanical recovery of meat from bone after slaughter.

The Meat and Livestock Australia's annual beef industry had projected a decline of 4% in the Beef and veal production last year and had projected that the limited number of suitable stock would make the going tough for the lot feeders.

Young cattle prices have crept higher and touched the 340c/kg mark.

The safety checks existing in the UK since 1996 have been refined in the US and new rules have also been introduced in Australia to bring it at par with the rest of the world.