Specified risk material (SRM) is the general term designated for tissues of ruminant animals that cannot be inspected and passed for human food because scientists have determined that BSE-causing prions concentrate there. The term was referred to in the United Kingdom's Specified Risk Material Order 1997 (S.I. 1997/2964), and in the United States Department of Agriculture’s regulatory response to the first confirmed U.S. BSE case in December 2003.
These can include brains, eyes, spinal cord, and other organs; the exact definition varies by jurisdiction. Under the new regulations (69 FR 1862, January 12, 2004), SRMs are: the brain, skull, eyes, trigeminal ganglia, spinal cord, vertebral column (with some exclusions), dorsal root ganglia (DRG) of cattle 30 months of age and older, and the tonsils and distal ileum of the small intestine of all cattle.
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