BSE inquiry: Special report

The BSE crisis was an agricultural catastrophe that developed a horrifying human dimension. The final phase of the official inquiry into the emergence of BSE - and what is thought to be its human equivalent, new variant CJD - is now complete. The committee will report to the government in early October.

The long search for the facts
In 1998 the first phase of the BSE inquiry took evidence from more than 300 witnesses and published more than 400 written statements. In phase two - which took place in 1999 and 2000 - witnesses were recalled and the evidence more closely investigated.

• CJD: The threat to human health
• BSE: More questions than answers

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'I need to know why my son died'
Stephen Churchill, who died in 1995 aged 19, was the first recorded victim of new variant CJD. His mother talks to BBC News Online about her fight for justice.

• The farmer's tale
• Britain's bill for mad cow crisis

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John Selwyn Gummer: Beef eater
The former agriculture minister will always be remembered for making great public show of feeding his four-year-old daughter Cordelia a hamburger in the midst of the "mad cow" disease scare.

• Douglas Hogg: Roasted over BSE
• Kenneth Calman: Cautious doctor
• Donald Acheson: Whistleblower
• Keith Meldrum: Official vet
• Nicholas Phillips: Chief inquisitor

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Multimedia
Trace the development of the BSE crisis from its early days when the government assured the public British beef was safe to eat - followed a few years later by the announcement of a suspected link between BSE and CJD.