Island braced for mass cull

A total of 40,000 animals are to be slaughtered

Ministry vets have begun contacting farms in preparation for a mass cull of 40,000 sheep and lambs on Anglesey.

It is hoped that the "firebreak" of animals will stop the spread of the foot-and-mouth disease but it is not yet clear if carcasses will be buried or burned.

There are now 40 confirmed cases of the virus within Wales, 13 of which are on Anglesey.

The number of cases of the virus continues to rise

The slaughter programme on the island was announced by the Welsh Agriculture Minister Carwyn Jones on Friday and is expected to begin on Tuesday.

Mr Jones has been told that it is the only effective way of controlling the spread of the disease.

"We are looking to carry out the cull as swiftly as possible," he said.

"The reasoning behind the pre-emptive cull is so that the disease doesn't spread any further."

There are concerns about the way matters have been dealt with to date

Plaid Cymru leader Ieuan Wyn Jones

Without going into specifics, Mr Jones said that he intended to find the quickest possible method of disposing of the carcasses.

"At the moment we're looking at a number of ways of disposing of the animals."

The Welsh Assembly said that the livestock on Anglesey would be taken to an abattoir at Gaerwen on the island for slaughter.

The Conservative Assembly Member for North Wales - Peter Rogers - said that the cull is "ill founded" and far too late.

But farming unions have widely supported the mass slaughter of animals on Anglesey.

'Dark day'

National Farmers Union Cymru President Hugh Richards said the cull was a "dark day for Welsh farmers."

But he added that they would accept it if scientists believed it was the best way to halt the disease.

Meanwhile Plaid Cymru leader Ieuan Wyn Jones said: "There are concerns about the way matters have been dealt with to date."

"Farmers need to know what is happening." he added.

Checking a lamb for signs of the disease

"We have now agreed a line of information with both farming unions so that if farmers need to know what is happening they can contact their farming union."

Maff officials began contacting farmers on the outer edges of the culling zone on Monday.

The Anglesey cull will cover 50 square miles of the island and is expected to take up to a fortnight.

Around a quarter of farmers on the island will be affected, some are marking up their best animals in they hope they can be saved in under plans to spare some pedigrees.

Meanwhile, in Powys - where the largest concentration of cases exists in Wales - Maff officials are to conduct interviews in order to discover how the disease has been spreading in the area.

A total of 24 infected sites have been identified in the county, but the pattern of contamination there has confused veterinary officials.

A cull of 10,000 sheep and 500 cattle began at farms on the Welsh border with Herefordshire on Thursday.

Maff vets said the animals are being put down because of "dangerous contacts" with an outbreak at Peterstow, near Ross-on-Wye.