A SMALL number of farmers in the Vale of York - which is under special bio-security restrictions to protect the area's huge pig stocks - have been branded as "criminally negligent" by North Yorkshire trading standards officers for ignoring the regulations.

The NFU expressed its dismay at the actions of this "minority" but other farmers pointed out that the rules were so complex that even some DEFRA officials were finding them difficult to understand.

Meanwhile, there were three confirmed cases in the Eden Valley area of Cumbria, the only new outbreaks in the UK. And the NFU is planning a mass demonstration at Gatwick Airport on Thursday (August 23) to protest against lax controls on food imports - believed by many to be the source of the current epidemic.