Spain has detected 12 cases of mad cow disease, or bovine spongiform encephalopathy (BSE), in the past two months of this year, an Agriculture Ministry report said.

Among these cases, six were found in Lugo, Palencia and Pontevedra, with two in each place. The rest were reported in Asturias, Coruna, Guadalajara, the Balearic Islands, Leon and Zamora, local press quoted the report as saying Thursday.

As of Thursday, a total of 527 cases have been reported in Spain since November 2000, when the first two BSE cases were discovered in the country.

The year 2004 saw an 18-percent decrease with only 137 cases reported, compared with the 167 cases in 2003.

However, specialists of the National BSE-Reference Laboratory warned that preventive measures have to be kept in view of the latest food crises.

(Xinhua News Agency March 4, 2005)