BEEF from cattle aged over 30 months will return to supermarkets in November after a nine-year ban imposed at the height of the BSE outbreak.

However, only meat from the older cattle that are tested free of bovine spongiform encephalopathy will be allowed into the food chain in a move that brings Britain in line with Europe. Cows born before July 31, 1996 — the date when mammalian meat and bonemeal was banned from their diet as a precaution against “mad cow” disease and its human form, variant Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease, vCJD — will never be allowed for human consumption.

As an extra safeguard, farmers will face an unlimited fine and/or up to two years in prison if any pre-1996 cows are sold for consumption. A campaign to persuade consumers that the meat is safe is planned in coming weeks.

The first 30-month-old cows can be slaughtered from November 7 but it may take a few days before the meat is on sale in shops. This older beef will provide meat for cheaper products, such as mince, burgers, pies and ready meals.

The Food Standards Agency is to publish leaflets for supermarket display advising that the risks to human health of this older beef is “very low”.

The leaflets will also explain the strict BSE testing procedures in place as well as extra controls to ensure that testing is properly enforced. This older meat can be eaten only in Britain, though ministers are hoping that the European Commission will allow it on to the Continent and relax rules relating to British beef exports by the new year.

Ministers have been cautious about lifting the ban and have relied on robust scientific evidence from the agency and other experts before allowing the beef back on sale.

Consumer groups Which? and the National Consumer Council were confident about the BSE tests and do not expect a backlash from shoppers.

Margaret Beckett, the Rural Affairs Secretary, said that public health protection remained the Government’s priority.

She said that BSE testing had to be rigorously applied. “It is imperative that abattoirs and cutting plants that decide to process beef from older cattle operate tight controls and follow all agreed procedures,” she said. She is pleased that supplies of British beef will be increased and that there will be savings for the taxpayer.

The ban on older beef, introduced in May 1996, has cost £3.7 billion. The testing scheme is expected to cost £40 million a year.

According to the Meat and Livestock Commission, the move will bring an extra 185,000 tonnes of British beef on to the market next year, a 27 per cent increase in home production. British people eat a million tonnes of beef a year in a market worth £5.8 billion.

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