Strict measures to keep out disease

There has been no foot-and-mouth in NI since 1941

The Department of Agriculture has announced a range of new controls at ports and airports in Northern Ireland to keep foot-and-mouth disease out of the province.

More than 100 farms in the province are under movement restrictions as department vets examine animals recently imported from other parts of Britain.

So far, Northern Ireland appears to be free from the virus, which has appeared at 11 farms and abattoirs in England and Wales over the past week.

However, it will be at least a week before any EU decision is made declaring the province a foot-and-mouth free zone.

The controls in place include:

Posters warning of the risk

Personal disinfection facilities at Belfast International Airport

Disinfection facilities for vehicles at the Larne and Belfast ports

24-hour vehicle inspection at both ports

Livestock vehicles being inspected and sprayed with disinfectant

Certification of all products from animals at risk of foot-and-mouth

Joe McDonald, a spokesman for the Ulster Farmer's Union, said farmers wanted every precaution to be taken to reduce the risk of the infection spreading.

"Farmers are also being asked to disinfect vehicles moving on and off farms, and again, farmers seem to be responding to the message," he said.

"Hopefully this will only last for a number of days. It's very important that we treat this seriously until this passes."

Earlier, the chief veterinary officer Bob McCracken said the measures restricting movement around farms had been painful.

But he told BBC Radio Ulster: "I think even more painful in many ways is the apprehension and fear about what could happen, today or tomorrow."

He said that nearly all of the cattle brought into Northern Ireland since 23 January have now been checked and none have foot and mouth disease.

But, warning farmers against complacency, he said: "I would again appeal to farmers to continue to be vigilant and to report all cases that look in any way to be like foot-and-mouth disease.

"Secondly, they must treat the farm like a fortress, letting nothing in and nothing out, and letting nobody in and nobody out as far as is practically possible"

There were fears last Friday that a cow which died in mid-Ulster had been infected with foot-and-mouth. An eight-kilometre exclusion zone was placed around the farm.

However, agriculture minister Brid Rodgers said on Monday that it was 99% certain the animal did not have the disease.

But she said it was still too early for the export ban on Northern Ireland to be lifted.

'Fortress' controls

Humans are not affected by foot-and-mouth although they can carry it, but the highly contagious virus, which affects pigs, sheep and cattle, is one of the most feared by farmers.

Dr McCracken will this week ask the European standing veterinary committee to consider lifting restrictions on meat and milk products from Northern Ireland, if it proves to be clear.

The Irish Government ban on the importation of all animal products from the United Kingdom, including the province, remains in place.

Irish police and customs officers are patrolling the border to enforce it and all vehicles have to drive over disinfected mats at the border.

Northern Ireland has also ceased importing animal products from Britain.