It’s official: in Europe, at least, sheep cannot develop BSE.

Discover B2B Marketing That Performs

Combine business intelligence and editorial excellence to reach engaged professionals across 36 leading media platforms.

Find out more


Children with an expanded vocabulary will not be surprised, seeing as BSE is bovine spongiform encephalitis. But British scientists had claimed that an ovine form of the disease could and did exist.


That was before it was discovered that these allegations were based on test errors, but the European Union has been double-checking anyway. Now its scientific steering committee has ruled that sheepmeat is BSE free and so “sheep casings should not be included in the list of specified risk materials in relation to BSE.”


It added that there is “no evidence that BSE is present in small ruminants under field conditions, and there is no indication that this could happen in the future.”


By Keith Nuthal, just-food.com correspondent

GlobalData Strategic Intelligence

US Tariffs are shifting - will you react or anticipate?

Don’t let policy changes catch you off guard. Stay proactive with real-time data and expert analysis.

By GlobalData

Just Food Excellence Awards - The Benefits of Entering

Gain the recognition you deserve! The Just Food Excellence Awards celebrate innovation, leadership, and impact. By entering, you showcase your achievements, elevate your industry profile, and position yourself among top leaders driving food industry advancements. Don’t miss your chance to stand out—submit your entry today!

Nominate Now