030131 USDA Increases Testing For Mad CowJanuary 16, 2003Washington - The Agriculture Department has stepped up monitoring for deadly mad cow disease to ensure it hasn't crossed into the United States. The department tested 19,990 cattle last year for bovine spongiform encephalopathy -- more than triple the 5,272 cattle tested in 2001, agency officials reported Wednesday. "Our surveillance level far exceeds international testing standards and is just one component of a multifaceted regulatory and compliance system that is keeping the United States free of BSE," said Agriculture Secretary Ann Veneman. Mad cow disease is linked to Creutzfeldt Jakob disease, a brain-wasting illness that has killed 100 people in Europe. The disease is believed to spread through eating brain or nerve tissue from infected animals.
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