MercoPress. South Atlantic News Agency

UK: Foot-and-mouth disease disease strain linked to nearby lab

A 3km protection zone and 10km surveillance zone are in place

The outbreak of foot-and-mouth disease on a farm in Surrey is being linked to a nearby animal research laboratory, with fears the virus could have leaked from the facility

Officials from the Department for the Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra) said the strain detected in cattle is the same as one being used at the Pirbright lab a few miles from the infected area. They could not say definitely that the laboratory is the source of the disease but immediately increased the size of the protection and surveillance zones covering farms in the area. Defra said the strain is not one recently found in animals but is similar to ones used in diagnostic laboratories and vaccine production. The strain is present at the Institute of Animal Health at Pirbright and was used in a vaccine batch manufactured last month by a pharmaceutical company which shares the site, Defra said. The company, Merial Animal Health, has halted vaccine production on a precautionary basis. In response to the findings, chief veterinary officer Debby Reynolds ordered a single protection zone to encompass both the infected farm premises and the Pirbright site, with a single 10km radius surveillance zone. An urgent review has also been launched into biosecurity arrangements at Pirbright, led by Professor Brian Spratt of Imperial University, who will report to Environment Secretary Hilary Benn and Dr Reynolds. Following the discovery of FMD on the farm near Guildford, the cattle were culled. Dr Reynolds said a cull had also taken place on an adjacent premises which had been identified as having "dangerous contact" with the infected herd. But she said a number of other potential cases reported in the wake of the outbreak had all proved to be negative. Prime Minister Gordon Brown is due to chair a further meeting of emergency committee Cobra - the fourth of the current crisis - on Sunday morning.