F&M: No bio-security breach

2007-08-06 22:56

London - British officials were attempting to contain an outbreak of foot-and-mouth disease on Monday and avoid a repeat of the mass infections that devastated the rural economy in 2001. And the European Union endorsed Britain's decision to ban meat and dairy exports.

Biosecurity experts were focusing their investigation on a suspected link between the affected and a nearby vaccine laboratory, Environment Secretary Hilary Benn said.

A report by the country's Health and Safety Executive inspectors was expected within 48 hours, he added.

Prime Minister Gordon Brown toured an emergency response centre on Monday, trying to reassure farmers about measures being taken to stem the outbreak.

Veterinary experts matched the strain found last week in cattle on a farm outside Wanborough, 50km southwest of London, to the laboratory, which is used to produce vaccine against the disease.

Foot-and-mouth affects cloven-hoofed animals including cows, sheep, pigs and goats, but does not typically affect humans.

'Limited use'

Brown, who broke off a vacation to handle the response, held talks at his London office with farming union leaders and pledged swift action during his visit to the emergency response centre in Reigate, in southern England.

"No resources will be spared to get to the bottom of this because we know the future of farming depends on it," he said.

Brown said inquiries were continuing to pinpoint the cause of the outbreak, but acknowledged the disease strain found in two infected cattle is the same used at a research laboratory about 6km from the scene of the outbreak.

The laboratory is shared by the government's Institute for Animal Health, or IAH, and a private pharmaceutical company, Merial Animal Health - the British arm of Duluth, Georgia-based Merial Ltd.

Merial said it found no evidence of a breach in biosecurity, and the IAH claimed a check of records found "limited use" of the virus in the past four weeks.

"It is still too early in this investigation for anyone to determine the cause of the outbreak," said Merial Animal Health's managing director, David Biland.

Environment Secretary Hilary Benn said a report by the health inspectors is expected within 48 hours.

"We have got to make sure this doesn't spread any further," Benn told British Broadcasting Corp. radio, recalling scenes in 2001 when 7 million animals were culled and incinerated on pyres dotted across the landscape, decimating agriculture and rural tourism in Britain.

If the outbreak is found to be linked to one of the two sites, it is likely to mean the infection will be contained to nearby cattle, reducing the risks of a repeat of the mass outbreaks of 2001, officials said.

- AP