Bush: I'm still eating beef

President George Bush today tried to calm America's fears of a mad cow disease epidemic by insisting he is still eating beef.

A White House spokesman said the President had "eaten beef in the last couple of days", as the search for meat tainted by a cow infected with BSE widened to eight states.

So far 10,000lb of beef have been recalled following the discovery of the cow in Washington State this month.

US investigators say it may have come from Canada, where a case of BSE was reported in May. But Canadian officials say US records contradict their own documents.

Democratic Party presidential hopeful Howard Dean has criticised President Bush for not setting up a tracking system that would have let officials quarantine the sick cow and cattle with which it had been in contact.