British authorities probe possible new foot and mouth case

LONDON (AFP) - British environment ministry officials said yesterday they were probing a new suspected case of foot and mouth disease in an area well outside the existing exclusion zone.

The Department for the Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (DEFRA) said it had placed a temporary control zone around the farm in the county of Kent, south-east England, as a precautionary measure while animals were tested.

Britain's chief vet Debby Reynolds said: "The containment and eradication of FMD remains our priority. This is why we have moved swiftly to put in place a temporary control zone while we investigate this development in Kent.

"At this stage disease has not been confirmed, laboratory results will follow. We are in a crucial week for vigilance and planning next steps.

"Today's developments are part of our ongoing surveillance and testing and I would take this opportunity to reiterate the need for the highest standards of biosecurity on farms, and for people to remain vigilant for disease and report any suspicions quickly."

The announcement comes nearly two weeks after the country's first case of foot and mouth disease since 2001 was confirmed in cattle at a farm in the neighbouring county of Surrey on August 3.

A second case on a neighbouring farm was confirmed shortly after but two other farms where the disease was suspected were later given the all-clear, raising hopes the outbreak had been successfully contained.

The latest farm, in the Romney Marsh area of Kent, is 84 miles (135 miles) south-east of Dorking, where the last case was suspected. It has 250 dairy cows.

The National Farmers' Union said the latest farm being investigated was similar to the last case, where the farmer alerted the authorities after his calves began showing signs of a virus with runny noses and swollen eyes.

Calves at the farm were found with "unusual muzzle lesions", a spokesman said, adding that local farmers were hopeful it would soon receive the all-clear.

"Farmers are obviously worried and concerned but we hope this suspected case will prove negative," said Chris Older, from the NFU in Kent.

"This is an example of a farmer doing exactly the right thing -- keeping a careful eye on his livestock and calling in the experts as soon as he noticed something was wrong."

After the first case, the government imposed an immediate ban on the movement of cattle, pigs and sheep which are most susceptible to the disease, as well as no-go areas around the affected farms.

Nearly 600 animals on three farms have been slaughtered, some as a precaution due to suspected "dangerous contact" with infected beasts.

Public health officials are investigating whether the virus may have leaked from an animal disease research centre near the affected farms because the strain of virus was identical to that used recently at the site.

The site, at Pirbright, houses the government-run Institute for Animal Health and the vaccine producer Merial Animal Health Limited, which is jointly run by US drugs company Merck and Co. Inc. and France's Sanofi-Aventis SA.

Both laboratories have denied any breach in their biosecurity procedures.