Third case of foot and mouth suspected

By Sylvia Westall and Adrian Croft

LONDON (Reuters) - Animal health officials said on Wednesday a third suspected outbreak of foot and mouth disease had been found in southern England, but a ban on sending animals to slaughter was lifted in most of the country.

The European Union decided after an emergency meeting of veterinary experts in Brussels to maintain a ban on all British fresh meat, milk and live animal exports because of the foot and mouth outbreak. They will review the ban again on August 23.

Britain's farming union warned members not to drop their guard despite the easing of restrictions on animal movement.

Government inspectors have said there is a "strong probability" the disease originated in two research laboratories near the infected farms in Surrey, southern England, and are carrying out further tests to try to confirm the theory.

Britain's chief veterinary officer said she had ordered livestock to be destroyed on suspicion of foot and mouth disease on a third farm in the area.

"I cannot rule out that disease is developing on the premises," Debby Reynolds told a news conference.

She said there was a low "but not negligible" risk that the virus could spread from the surveillance zone set up around the infected farms to the rest of the country.

After the first outbreak was confirmed last Friday, the government banned animal movements to stop it from spreading.