Previous outbreaks

2001

FMD was confirmed in GB on 20 February 2001 at Brentwood, Essex with the outbreak lasting for 221 days. The last case was in Cumbria on 30 September 2001. The UK was officially declared disease free on 22 January 2002.

FMD was confirmed in Wales on 27 February 2001 at Gaerwen, Anglesey and lasted 166 days. At its peak 35% of Wales was under movement restrictions with a total of 117 infected premises. Some 70,000 animals had to be slaughtered on infected premises with 1.12 million animals slaughtered in total (including for welfare reasons). The last confirmed case in Wales was on 12 August 2001 at Crickhowell, Powys.

2007

FMD was confirmed on 3 August 2007 in Surrey with the outbreak lasting for 58 days. There were eight confirmed cases of FMD in a localised area in the south-east of England. The UK became officially disease free on 22 February 2008.

Lessons learned

Prior to 2001 the last major FMD outbreak in the UK was in 1967-8. Following this, contingency plans were drawn up based on recommendations in the 1969 Northumberland Report. However, these plans did not take into account how the nature of the British livestock industry had changed between 1968 and 2001. Following the 2001 outbreak the first Welsh contingency plan was published in 2003. It is regularly amended and tested in exercises and outbreaks in order to keep it up-to-date.

FMD in 1967-8 mainly affected cattle; there were fewer livestock movements, which were over shorter distances. Changes in farming practices led to increased animal movements, particularly sheep. There are now measures in place to reduce the likelihood of an outbreak on the scale of 2001 from happening again. Movement controls on cattle, sheep, goats and pigs were introduced in 2001. Initially set at 20 days, these were revised in 2003 to the current 6 day standstill. The standstill period remains 20 days for pigs. The standstill prevents animals moving from the holding except for certain exceptions, for example animals moving direct to slaughter. Should disease be developing in any animal brought onto the farm, it should be detected before the disease is spread by animals moving off. This measure alone would slow down the spread of disease prior to FMD being identified. If FMD is confirmed in GB a movement ban would be declared by the three administrations immediately to limit the spread of disease.

Any vehicles used to transport livestock must be cleansed and disinfected after use to prevent the spread of disease. At markets there is now a legal requirement for the entire animal area to be cleansed and disinfected to ensure that disease is not passed from the market to the animal. Anyone entering market premises is expected to have clean clothes and footwear and disinfection facilities are provided. The areas where animals are handled are subject to stricter biosecurity controls than the public areas.

Effective biosecurity, traceability and movement controls are ongoing necessities to prevent the incursion and spread of disease.