White House may tighten animal feed rules

The Bush administration is preparing to tighten rules on animal feed, human food and dietary supplements as pressure heats up to lower the risk of mad-cow disease, the Wall Street Journal said on Monday.
Citing people familiar with the matter, the paper said the moves by the US Food and Drug Administration are likely to close loopholes that might allow potentially contaminated materials derived from cattle to be fed back to cattle and other livestock.
The FDA would ban the use of cow blood and blood products and poultry litter, among other ingredients, in feed for cows, the paper quoted those sources as saying.
It also said the FDA is "leaning toward" banning the use of certain high-risk material, such as cows' small intestines, in human food or supplements.
According to the paper, Bush administration officials still are weighing the new policies, which are expected to be announced as soon as this week.