In the wake of the Department of Agriculture's announcement confirming a third case of mad cow disease in the U.S., Farm Aid, Somerville, Mass., a family farm organization, has released tips to help consumers make decisions when purchasing beef that will help ensure the meat they select is safe.

"This ... confirmation of [another] case of Bovine Spongiform Encephalopathy (BSE), or mad cow disease, should serve as a reminder for [individuals] to know as much as they can about the food they buy," recommends Mark Smith, campaign director for Farm Aid. "To help guarantee the safety of beef, food buyers should learn where the meat is from, who produced it, and how it was processed."

Here are steps shoppers can take to minimize exposure to mad cow disease:

Learn as much as you can about the meat you buy. Ask retailers and butchers questions about how the meat was produced and processed. Where did it come from? How were the cattle raised? Try to learn who produced the food, and choose meat products that come from family farmers and ranchers you trust.

Try to buy directly from local farmers or ranchers. Many areas have local meat lockers that take pride in their cleanliness and safety record. Support butchers and lockers that source their products from local farmers and ranchers.

Buy organic or grass-fed beef. Organic beef cattle are raised on organic feed that strictly prohibits animal by-products linked to the spread of BSE among livestock. Meat processing facilities that are organically certified use strict protocols that separate organic meat from conventional meat, limiting the chances of contamination with infected beef.

In addition to these steps, consumers can demand change in the food system on a Federal level. "This most recent discovery of mad cow disease presents an opportunity for policymakers to make decisions that protect citizens and our food supply. Our elected leaders must hear a loud and clear call for safe food and safe farming practices," says Smith. "How we respond to this new challenge will help create a future of healthful food."

Farm Aid recommends that concerned buyers should call their state representatives in Washington to demand that the USDA take immediate actions to safeguard the food supply:

Immediately ban feeding all blood, manure, and chicken coop and slaughterhouse waste to all animals. This is a critical and necessary step to stop the possible transmission of mad cow disease to other farm animals used for human consumption.

Immediately ban the Advanced Meat Recovery System. This technology in the butchering of livestock is considered by many experts to be responsible for contaminating meat cuts with tissue from the cow's central nervous system.

Test all cows destined for the food supply. Now is not the time for the USDA to scale back their BSE surveillance program. The conformation-dependent immunoassay developed by the Nobel-prize winning scientist Stanley Prusiner could test 2,000-8,000 samples a day with a turn-around time of five hours, in contrast to the current USDA test, which takes seven days. Other countries test every cow--the U.S. should, too.

Immediately enforce existing antitrust laws that break up the power and counter the influence of large meatpackers on food policies. Four corporations now control more than 80% of the meat packing industry. Large food corporations exert tremendous influence over food safety policies. Food and farm policies should serve the interests of consumers and producers--not those of the giant packers and processors.