At a glance: Foot-and-mouth reaction

Agriculture minister: Need for swift action is accepted

As the foot-and-mouth crisis continues to escalate there has been a cautious welcome from farmers and others in the livestock industry for tough action including the total ban on animal movement.

And while the farming community braces itself for a potential catastrophe, politicians are already gearing up for the inevitable battle over compensation.

Livestock traders, who anticipated the ban by announcing the closure of all of England and Wales' abattoirs and livestock markets, said despite "significant difficulties" they would support the "standstill".

We support this stoppage because we want to get this situation sorted out as soon as possible - a protracted epidemic would be an even bigger disaster

Peter Kingwill
Livestock Auctioneers' Association

But Peter Kingwill, chairman of the Livestock Auctioneers' Association, was pessimistic about whether the ban would end after a week.

He said: "We support this stoppage because we want to get this situation sorted out as soon as possible.

"A protracted epidemic would be an even bigger disaster."

The Meat and Livestock Commission was quick to emphasise that the country was not about to run out of meat.

A spokesman said: "We have spoken to the industry and we are satisfied there is enough meat in the system for there not to be any problems over the course of the next seven days."

NFU support

The NFU had indicated its support for a movement ban even before the government publicised its decision.

Ian Gardiner, deputy director general of the National Farmers' Union, told BBC Radio 4's World at One programme: "The first days are absolutely key - we've got to stop this disease gaining control.

"We might have lost some battles in the last 24 hours but we have got to keep fighting even more strongly.

"We appeal to the public, particularly the public in Northumberland and Essex, just do not go on farmland this weekend."

But Kevin Pearce, chief adviser on beef and sheep for the NFU, said it was "good news" that Maff officers believed they had found the source of the infection and insisted they had taken all necessary precautions.

Maff 'dithering'

Shadow agriculture minister Tim Yeo, who earlier accused Maff of dithering, called for better information and for the quarantine areas to be policed to prevent the disease spreading further.

Conservative leader William Hague urged the government to clarify the compensation arrangements for farmers affected by the outbreak.

The industry want the foot-and-mouth condition in the United Kingdom brought to an end as swiftly as possible, and it is better to go through pain now, and get it under control, than let it drift

Nick Brown

Mr Hague said it was vital farmers were properly remunerated for loss of business as a result of restrictions put in place to curb the disease's spread.

Agriculture Minister Nick Brown stated that farmers would be compensated for any animals slaughtered at 100% of the value of the animal, but said that the government would not pay for any consequential loss.

He said: "The industry want the foot-and-mouth condition in the United Kingdom brought to an end as swiftly as possible, and it is better to go through pain now, and get it under control, than let it drift."

Liberal Democrat agriculture spokesman Colin Breed told BBC Radio 4's Today programme the "wildfire" spread of foot-and-mouth disease was encouraged by government measures which had forced farmers to transport livestock "great distances" to an abattoir.

Vigilant vet

Officials at the Food Standards Agency's Meat Hygiene Service paid tribute to the vigilance of their staff in first spotting the disease at the abattoir in Essex.

Despite never having seen the contagious disease first hand, Craig Kirby, the MHS's Official Veterinary Surgeon based at Cheale Meats abattoir, uncovered the start of the current outbreak.

He explained: "The drover began moving the sows and they became very noisy.

"I moved in to look at their condition and quickly spotted that they were showing the signs of foot-and-mouth disease.

Enormous implications

"It is not a disease I have ever seen before, but it is one of the key diseases we are trained to spot.

"The implications of missing an outbreak at an early stage are enormous, given how far and fast it travels.

"I have always hoped never to see it, for the sake of the livelihoods of farmers; others in the industry, and the well-being of the animals themselves."

The vet was then able to alert Maff and seal the site.