Food festival vows to beat foot and mouth threat

Aug 9 2007 by Liam Murphy, Liverpool Daily Post

WIRRAL Food and Drink Festival will still take place this year, despite restrictions on farms imposed because of the foot and mouth outbreak.

As the Government last night eased some restrictions on the movement of livestock outside the protection and surveillance zones in Surrey, the organisers of the Wirral event said they were confident of being able to continue with the festival.

The event, celebrating local produce, is only in its second year after a huge success last August, and is due to take place on Sunday and Monday, August 26 and 27, at Claremont Farm in Spital.

Spokeswoman Anne Benson confirmed last night that preparations for the event were continuing and said, because no livestock is raised at the farm, there should be no problems.

She added: “It’s full steam ahead and we’re looking forward to another fantastic festival.”

But, elsewhere across Wirral, farmers who raise beef and dairy cattle as well as other livestock are worrying about the future.

Karen Young, from Rocklands Farm, in Thornton Hough, has 25 beef cattle on their smallholding.

Mrs Young said: “Wirral is still basically a very rural area, in the south and west particularly, and there are a lot of farms here and even more in Cheshire.”

She has already put in place “bio-security” measures and followed government advice, including disinfectant at the entrances to the farm.

She said: “The thing you have to be careful of is reps who travel across the country.

“Most places are doing their best to reduce the risk of it travelling, but it shows how even industries allied to farming are being affected.

“This is being taken very serious by the whole farming industry – it’s not just a case of us not being able to move cattle.”

Steve Ledsham, of Church Farm, in Thurstaston, said his popular farm shop remains open for the time being but he has had sleepless nights worrying about what could happen.

He said his farm, which also provides events for children as well as a caravan and camp site, is not affected “at the moment”

However, he is asking campers where they are from and turning away those coming from near the affected farms in the south of England and says the future remains uncertain.

Mr Ledsham said: “We are desperately worried. If it got worse, we could be forced to close the farm to the public.

“At the moment, I’m 50-50 on it and just hoping for the best.”

Gwyn Williams, partner in Chelford Market, one of the biggest agricultural sales in the country, said he was hopeful, if no new cases of foot and mouth emerged in the next few day, that markets could begin operating in a month or so.

He said the livestock market had ceased for the time being, although other sales continue.

Mr Williams said: “It looks like it’s being dealt with better than in 2001.

“They seem to have isolated it and pin-pointed where it came from – and hopefully isolated it in that area, too. It gives me confidence we will be opening again sooner rather than later.”

He said August and September are key months for major sales in livestock – and the lack of sales will hit farmers.

liammurphy