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Call for ban on illegal food imports to thwart terrorist threat 1/10/2001
Terrorists could exploit Britains inadequate customs controls by importing biological weapons into the country via illegal foodstuffs, fears the Farmers’ Union of Wales.
The union has been calling on the Government to clamp down hard on the growing trade in illegal meat imports ever since foot and mouth disease struck last February. The union is now demanding that immediate action is taken to halt this activity.
The union was appalled when it discovered earlier this year that tons of illegal bush meat - including antelope, monkey and rat - was routinely smuggled into the UK for sale at shops and restaurants.
Since the terrorist atrocity in America the need for swift action against a potentially greater threat against the population of this country has grown dramatically, believes the FUW.
"Foot and mouth disease is an agricultural and economic disaster, but the potential threat to human health from biological weapons could be catastrophic," said FUW President Bob Parry.
"We have all witnessed the devastating and indiscriminate power wielded by these terrorists in their attacks on New York and Washington.
"It is not outside the bounds of reality that some of these terrorist organisations have the money and the facilities to develop biological weapons.
"It is imperative that the Government takes the views of the FUW, and others within the food industry, seriously.
"I am calling once again on the Government to invest heavily in staff and security equipment at our ports and airports to immediately halt this disgusting and potentially deadly trade."
The FUWs view is shared by a biological weapons expert and the Governments chief vet, who have both called for improved import controls.
Chief vet Jim Scudamore is quoted in todays newspapers as calling for sophisticated X-ray machines to be installed at airports and ports to identify illegal food imports in the 2.2 million containers that enter Britain each year.
He is also reported to be concerned about the level of illegal bush meat brought in by individual travellers. Spot checks on passengers aboard 14 flights entering Heathrow Airport last year discovered 5.76 tons of illegal meat.
Joe Brownlie, Professor of Veterinary Pathology at the Royal Veterinary College, has expressed grave concern about illegal meat imports on a number of occasions. He has warned Government vets that the country is vulnerable to a range of diseases, mainly from Africa and Asia.
Professor Brownlie said it was unfair to expect the UK agriculture industry to remain free of these diseases without the Government taking adequate precautions to protect them
He is reported as being particularly worried about the threat to people from ebola, a fatal brain disease that can be contracted from monkey meat, and the possible import of cattle plague from Africa and the Indian subcontinent.
"In the present war climate, diseases become uncontrolled and they start to move," he said. "In war zones there will be a lack of surveillance."
The FUWs concern also stems from comments made by Dr Simon Whitby of Bradford University, an expert in biological and toxic weapons control.
Dr Whitby said: "I dont think anyone in the UK thinks foot and mouth was a deliberate outbreak, but the fact that it appears to have originated from a single source - and that single source originated from the importation of meat products from abroad - highlights the vulnerability of our livestock to such a virus.
"It should be said that very little has been mentioned about the vulnerability of our food system in general to terror attack."
Dr Whitby said the general view was that most terror groups did not have the technical expertise or resources to carry out a biological attack.
"Nevertheless, this form of warfare can be made much less likely through a host of overlapping multi-lateral control and prohibition regimes," he said. "This includes reliable intelligence, effective and efficient import and export control mechanisms, developing protective measures such as vaccines, etc."
Bob Parry said: "The Government must listen to these experts, who are just as concerned about Britains poor import controls as we are. This is not a case of the farming industry attempting to protect its own market. It is a case of thinking the unthinkable. The Government must take heed of these warnings and halt all illegal imports now."
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