Foot and Mouth Disease
Foot and Mouth Disease (FMD) is caused by a highly infectious virus among farmstock. Cattle, sheep, pigs, goats and deer are all susceptible. Elephants, camelids, hedgehogs, rats and any cloven-footed animals can also contract it.
Foot and Mouth disease can be spread by:
- direct contact with an infected animal
- airbourne spread from an infected animal
- infected material carried on vehicles' tyres and wheel arches and on machinery. This includes pick-ups, quad bikes, tractors, combines, trailers, any delivery vehicles, milk tankers, feed and fertiliser lorries
- infected material carried on people, equipment, sheepdogs, scavenging animals and vermin.
Current Situation
There are currently no outbreaks in the UK.
Progress Report: Scottish Government's Response to the Foot and Mouth Disease Review (Scotland) 2007
The' Foot and Mouth Review Scotland 2007', published in 2008, made 55 recommendations to reduce the risk of a FMD outbreak and possible disruption from an outbreak of FMD in the future.
Since the publication of the review the Scottish Government has undertaken a substantial amount of work on meeting the recommendations. The 'Progress Report: Scottish Government's Response to the Foot and Mouth Disease Review (Scotland) 2007' documents what action the Scottish Government has taken in relation to the recommendations made in the 'Foot and Mouth Review (Scotland) 2007'.
Exercise Silver Birch
National (GB) Foot and mouth disease (FMD) exercise: Publication of Evaluation and Lessons Identified Report
Exercise 'Silver Birch' was a major national exercise involving Scottish Government, Animal Health, Defra and the Welsh Assembly Government. The Exercise, held on 9 and 10 November 2010, simulated a medium to large scale Foot and Mouth Disease outbreak that had spread from England to Wales and Scotland.
The purpose of the exercise was to review and check the Governments' contingency plans and policies for the control and eradication of an outbreak of foot and mouth disease and thereby establish the current state of readiness and resilience for such an outbreak whilst identifying improvements in the plans, instructions, structures and procedures employed in managing an outbreak.
A lessons identified report prepared on Governments' behalf by Animal Health agency has now been published.
The exercise has generated positive outcomes and encouraging feedback however Government still needs to ensure that the lessons identified are taken on board to further improve our preparedness. Examples of some of the lessons are: guidance on access to the countryside during a FMD outbreak, improving internal communication processes, IT connectivity and data sharing. Annex B of the report contains details of the recommendations.