A Holstein raised in Kanagawa Prefecture was confirmed Friday as the nation's fifth case of mad cow disease, and the prefectural government said it was likely fed the same type of milk substitute given to the other four infected animals.
The Health, Labor and Welfare Ministry confirmed that the Holstein was infected with the disease, formally known as bovine spongiform encephalopathy.
The milk substitute is believed to have been manufactured at the same plant in Takasaki, Gunma Prefecture, run by a subsidiary of the National Federation of Agricultural Cooperative Associations (Zen-Noh), they said.
The officials issued these remarks after inspecting a dairy farm earlier in the day in Isehara, where the fifth mad cow was born and raised.