[JURIST] The Canadian government said Thursday it could not appeal Wednesday's decision by a US federal judge in Montana to delay the re-opening of the American market to young Canadian cattle. Canadian cattle imports were stopped last year after a Canadian animal was found to have died of "mad cow disease" [US Centers for Disease Control backgrounder]. Elizabeth Whiting, from the Canadian Office of the Minster of Agriculture and Agri-Food [Agriculture Canada website], said any appeal would have to be made by the US Department of Agriculture, not the government of Canada. "As we are not a party in the litigation…we are not in a position to appeal." US Agriculture Secretary Mike Johanns has already expressed his disappointment in the court's ruling [USDA press release]. The US halted its imports of Canadian beef in May 2003 following Canada's first domestic case of bovine spongiform encephalopathy (BFE). Reuters has more.