May 20, 2004 Bloomberg News

Documents show the Canadian Food Inspection Agency warned that increased testing for bovine spongiform encephalopathy in Canada would boost the possibility of finding another case of the disease, the report said. A cow with the disease was discovered a year ago in Alberta. Another diseased cow from Canada was found in Washington state in late December.

Bob Speller, Canada's Agriculture Minister, said in January the government would test 8,000 cows in 2004, up from 5,500 in 2003, and as many as 30,000 a year in the next five years. That compares with recommendations for the immediate testing of 65,000 cows over one year that senior inspection agency veterinarians argued was needed to provide ``international credibility'' to Canada's effort to find sick animals.

On Wednesday, Gary Little, a senior agency veterinarian, said the government decided against testing 65,000 cows in favor of longer-term surveillance that would provide ``a more accurate picture'' of the disease in Canada, the Sun said. Little denied that concerns about finding another mad cow case contributed to the government's decision, the report said.