No Borders For Meat Trade

BBC News

As British meat is banned from many countries because of the foot-and-mouth outbreak, the editor of ThePigsite.com, Jim Muirhead, considers the global nature of the trade.

Many people are now asking as to how this could happen again, but the answer lies in the fact that meat production is now a global industry.

In many areas of the world viral diseases such as swine fever and foot-and-mouth are endemic.

The main problem is that many of these viruses are highly resistant to chilling, freezing and curing and experience has shown that even boiling may not destroy all disease organisms.

Even a tiny amount of meat or dairy product could contain a dangerous virus and if eaten by pigs, poultry or other animals, it could allow the disease to establish itself.