August 20, 2004 United Press International

EFSA, asked by the European Commission to provide an up-to-date report on the risk of mad cow disease in U.S. cattle, reviewed data from 1980 to 2003 and concluded: "It is likely but not confirmed that domestic cattle are ... infected with the (mad cow)-agent."

Cows infected with mad cow disease, also known as bovine spongiform encephalopathy, or BSE, were "probably imported into the United States and could have reached domestic cattle" in the mid-1980s, EFSA said.

In addition, EFSA said, it is possible infected meat and bone meal was imported in the early 1990s and turned into cattle feed that could have infected domestic cows.

Humans can contract a fatal brain illness known as variant Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease from eating beef products infected with the mad cow agent.

The only confirmed case of mad cow disease in the United States occurred last December. The U.S. Department of Agriculture has expanded its testing program for the deadly disease and says it expects to find additional cases.