Development of primers for detection of heat-treated cetacean materials in porcine meat and bone meal

Abstract

The feed ban introduced after the detection of the first case of bovine spongiform encephalopathy in 2001 in Japan has been modified to allow some of the previously prohibited animal materials to be used in animal feed. Recently, porcine materials were allowed to be used in feed for pigs, poultry, and fish. Materials from other mammals, including whales, remain prohibited. In the absence of a method to detect the prohibited whale materials in porcine materials, there is a possibility that the whale materials are being used for feed for pigs, poultry, and fish. To detect illegal use of whale materials mixed with porcine materials, we have developed PCR primers specific to a group of most cetacean species, using a computer-based method we developed previously. The primer sets were capable of detecting whale meat meal that had been autoclaved at 133°C for up to 20 min. The detection limit of whale material in porcine meat and bone meal was 0.1%. Copyright ©, International Association for Food Protection.