BRITAIN'S beef authorities have said that 1,714 new cases of BSE were recorded to May 8th, with a further 5,039 cows showing symptoms of the disease and separated from their herds. A total of 1,241 confirmed cases of BSE were registered in the first four months of the year.
The Paris based International Office of Epizootics (OIE) said 3,568 cattle had been slaughtered in Britain and that the country's overall total of BSE cases in 1995 was 14,223.
The second worst hit country, Switzerland, which had 68 cases in 1995, declared 25 new cases from January to mid April. Since then, the authorities have discovered three more cases, taking the overall number to 28.
Ireland, with 16 last year, registered 10 new cases in the first quarter, the OIE said. France had five new cases for the same period, with Portugal recording four.