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Quick kill

Tens of thousands of farm animals are being destroyed across mainland Europe, as fears mount that Britain's outbreak of foot and mouth disease has been exported.

The precautionary slaughter is being accompanied by extreme vigilance. Europe has some of the densest concentrations of livestock in the world and with none vaccinated against FMD, the continent could be ravaged by the disease.

On Wednesday, five sheep imported from the UK to a farm near Dusseldorf in Germany were found to have antibodies to FMD. This means the animals have come into contact with the virus, but there were no indication that they had contracted the disease.

Recent FMD incidents in Europe have been dealt with swiftly and effectively. Last July, when FMD was diagnosed in Greece, the first 1400 potentially exposed animals were destroyed within 24 hours. A total of 7360 were destroyed by August, ending the outbreak. In 1993, infected pigs diagnosed near Milan were slaughtered within hours, again ending the outbreak.

The first case in England was found on February 19 and confirmed the next day. In the week since then at least 17 cases have been confirmed across England and Wales. This means the virus has been circulating for several weeks, long enough for it to spread, and for infected animals to complete the incubation period.

No vaccination

During those weeks Britain exported many thousands of animals. Any infected beasts, especially pigs, would transmit the virus in coughs and sneezes. It is highly contagious and can spread 100 kilometres or more on Europe's damp winter winds.

It could find plenty of victims as the European Union declared FMD eradicated and stopped vaccinating animals ten years ago. The EU calculated that dealing with occasional infection from outside would be less expensive. Vaccination also leaves FMD proteins in meat, making it indistinguishable from infected meat and thus not saleable to some markets, including the US.

Nervous eyes are watching pig farms in Yorkshire and Norfolk, which along with Brittany, eastern Denmark, and a belt stretching across Flanders, the Netherlands and northern Germany, have among the highest pig densities in the world. Any outbreak there, warn experts, would cause the virus to multiply enormously.

Take no chances

Continental Europe is taking no chances. Livestock markets have closed and airport staff are checking air passengers arriving from the UK for meat.

France will destroy 20,000 British sheep imported for the Muslim Eid celebrations next month, while the Dutch have destroyed 3200 animals on farms that merely do business with Britain.

Germany has destroyed 1850 British sheep, and plans to impose controversial, emergency vaccination, using new vaccines, in areas surrounding any suspected case.

If the disease does spread, the EU will be hard put to compensate farmers, after emptying its coffers for BSE controls.

See also: Saving our bacon

From hog to human



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