Britain asks EU to ease meat export restrictions

TEMPORARY livestock price boosts due to the British foot and mouth outbreak may start to disappear today, if Britain succeeds with a request to fellow EU member states to allow exports of meat from all but the restricted area where foot and mouth disease was found on August 3.

It is hoped the EU’s Standing Committee on the Food Chain and Animal Health will today “regionalise” the ban, by designating most of Britain a “low-risk” area.

The European Commission executive arm of the EU is recommending regionalisation as soon as possible.

Restrictions have particularly affected smaller family livestock farms where cash flow is critical, and which were hit by flooding in July.

As a result, calls for help to farming charities, such as the Royal Agricultural Benevolent Institution have reached their highest level since the 2001 foot-and-mouth.

At best, movement restrictions in the Surrey protection zone could be lifted tomorrow, and Sunday is the first possible date for easing the export ban, possibly to allow exports of meat and livestock products from outside the surveillance zone, within which export bans could be lifted on September 9.

The lifting of all remaining restrictions on livestock movements, the complete lifting of the export ban and the resumption of livestock markets are likely on September 10 — providing there are no further outbreaks.

By early November, the UK’s foot-and-mouth free status could be restored.