Canada has confirmed a new case of mad cow disease in a dairy cow from British Columbia (Canada's most western province).
Canada's Food Inspection Agency announced Sunday that the six-year-old animal had the brain-wasting disease, but the agency said no part of the animal entered human food or animal feed systems.
It was Canada's fifth known case of the disease.
U.S. agriculture officials have been invited to assist in the investigation. U.S. Agriculture Secretary Mike Johanns issued a statement saying he does not anticipate a change in U.S. imports of beef and cattle from Canada.
The U.S. banned the import of live cattle from Canada in 2003 following the discovery of a case of mad cow. The ban was partially lifted last year.
Some information for this report provided by AP, AFP and Reuters.