On a day which marks the 20th anniversary of the 2001 Foot and Mouth Disease outbreak – the worst on record for the UK – Scotland’s Chief Vet Sheila Voas recalls the devastating impact that the disease had and the lessons learned in a guest blog for NFU Scotland.
To recognise the anniversary, NFU Scotland will publish a short series of guest articles between today (confirmation of the first UK case) and 1 March (confirmation of the first Scottish case) written by those at the heart of the outbreak and the subsequent response and recovery.
In her blog, Sheila recalls: “This is, in no way, an anniversary to be celebrated, but I’m sure that many people, like me, will be remembering and reflecting on the horror, the pain and the devastation caused to farmers and to those working closely with them. Despite the significant impact on rural communities, and indeed across much of society, there is no doubt that those at the frontline of dealing with the epidemic, and those with susceptible livestock, felt the effects most acutely.”
She candidly admits that her experiences of working as a vet during the outbreak still give her nightmares but urges that while we remember the outbreak and all that was lost because of it, we should also reflect on the good that has come about as a result, with the aim of preventing such a disaster from happening again, at least in scale. She also points to the lessons learned about the impact such an outbreak can have on mental health and the ongoing toll amongst farmers and vets.
To prevent such an outbreak ever happening again, Sheila writes: “It’s not just a role for government. Whilst my team can implement legislation for recording of animal movements and standstills; prohibit the feeding of swill – which is believed to be the cause of the 2001 outbreak; and work with other government departments to protect our international borders; individuals and companies can make sure that their biosecurity is good enough so that even if the worst does happen and the disease gets through our defences, it does not have the chance to spread to other animals as quickly as it did in 2001.
“So, let’s remember the outbreak of FMD in 2001, continue to learn from it, and focus on the good things that have been put in place as a result, to prevent such an awful situation happening again.”
To read the full blog, go to: https://www.nfus.org.uk/news/blog/twenty-years-on-from-fmd-2001–scotlands-chief-vet-remembers
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