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New foot-and-mouth in UK
31/12/2001 20:22 - (SA)
London - Hopes that England would on Monday finally be declared free of foot-and-mouth disease have been scuppered by just two sheep in the northeastern region of Northumberland, although the longed-for statement could be just days away, officials said.
The agriculture ministry said three of the final four areas
previously hit by the livestock virus had now been pronounced free of the disease.
They include Cumbria, northwest England, which recorded nearly
half of the 2 030 cases of foot-and-mouth confirmed in Britain.
National Farmers' Union President Ben Gill said: "This is one
more step on the road towards breaking free of the terrible
shackles of foot-and-mouth."
However, England as a whole could not be declared free of the
disease after samples from two sheep in Northumberland tested
positive for foot-and-mouth antibodies, a ministry spokesperson said.
The test results mean the sheep at one time came into contact
with the virus.
Further tests are being conducted to see if the virus spread to the animals but the herd is being slaughtered as a precaution
anyway.
Monday was seen as a landmark day for England's agriculture
industry as it marks three months since the last reported new case of foot-and-mouth on September 30.
Government vets have used the three-month deadline as a basis
for deciding whether an area is free of the virus.
Foot-and-mouth erupted in February and soon became the most
serious animal disease epidemic in Britain in modern times.
Since then, there have been 2 030 confirmed cases, leading to the slaughter of more than four million animals, mainly cattle, sheep and pigs.
At its height, large swathes of countryside were sealed off to
the public, and the epidemic is estimated to have cost the farming sectors billions of pounds.
Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland have already been declared free of the disease, which does not affect humans.
Exports of most animal products are allowed from safe areas, and this will now extend to Cumbria, North Yorkshire and County Durham.
Elliot Morley, minister for animal welfare, said: "This has been the worst serious animal epidemic in the UK in modern times and the worst foot-and-mouth outbreak the world has seen.
"Every step towards disease-free status marks a significant
achievement ... but until we achieve that objective we cannot
afford to be complacent."
Keith Raine, head of the disease control centre in
Northumberland, pointed out that the farm was being regarded as "a dangerous contact, not an infected premise".
He said they still hoped to declare Northumberland
foot-and-mouth free "in the near future". - Sapa-AFP
- SAPA
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