THE welcome end of the foot and mouth epidemic brings with it one real danger: the resumption of the cruel live animal export trade.

The suffering of sheep and lambs in severely over-crowded trucks, often without food or water, for journeys which can last for 40 hours or more, is a practice that must never resume.

Before foot and mouth, the UK was exporting around 800,000 lambs and sheep a year, many being sent all the way to Italy, Greece and Spain.

Many farmers are eager to return to this trade. Compassion in World Farming (CIWF) investigations have revealed that animals suffer terribly during the long journeys to southern Europe. They become increasingly dehydrated, exhausted and stressed as the journeys wear on. Some get injured, while others collapse on the floor of the truck, where they are trampled by their companions.

Once in southern Europe, many animals are slaughtered in abattoirs using methods which are illegal in Britain.

The foot and mouth crisis has cost the British taxpayer at least £2.7 billion and has resulted in much suffering for both animals and humans. The legacy of this crisis should be seen as an opportunity to change unacceptable practices and develop new, more humane methods.

I urge sheep farmers not to go back to live exports. Instead animals should be slaughtered here in Britain, with our exports being in meat form.

As foot and mouth comes to an end, many people want to see farming go forward in a way which is humane and sustainable, and not to be tarnished by the cruelty of live animal exports.

The export of live farm animals is a vile and reprehensible trade that must never resume.

Janetta Lambert,

Boroughbridge Road,

York.

Updated: 10:44 Wednesday, April 03, 2002