FARMERS are bracing themselves for another potential crisis in the industry with news that a ban could be imposed on the consumption of UK lamb if sheep were found to be suffering from mad cow disease.

One North Yorkshire farmer said he feared "scaremongering" about this latest revelation could send prices plummeting in less than a week.

The ban on lamb is one contingency plan being considered by the Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food (MAFF) in the event of a confirmed outbreak of BSE in the national flock.

Brian Cook, who farms near Helmsley, said he was worried that a price crash akin to that experienced with beef during the original BSE scare could hit farmers.

He said: "I don't think there's anything wrong with British lamb. It seems that if a scientist says there's a possibility of BSE then people say 'we have to ban it'."

Mr Cook added: "We are losing hand over fist without this lamb situation starting. We'll be able to tell in a week whether it's hit the market - we'll see it in the prices by Tuesday."

But he said that now fears had been raised, thorough testing should begin to allay those concerns.

A report by a Food Standards Agency working party has warned that BSE in sheep could be "masked" by a similar disease, scrapie.

Scrapie and BSE are so similar that some experts fear they could be confused.

MAFF contingency plans include a total ban on the consumption of UK lamb or the possibility that only meat from sheep genetically immune to diseases such as BSE would be allowed into butchers' shops and supermarkets.

A spokesman for the National Farmers' Union said farmers would have to face up to the "terrifying" prospect of entire flocks being destroyed if BSE was discovered in sheep.