Stamp out illegal imports. The villains are putting us all at risk, says ROB SIMPSON of the Yorkshire and North East National Farmers Union.

Everyone living in the countryside has an opinion about foot-and-mouth disease. Whether it is the huge costs incurred, the suffering caused to both farmers and sometimes their animals, or the adequacy of the Government's handling of the disease.

Opinions have varied massively, but there is one issue which has won universal acceptance - how the disease got into the UK.

No country is allowed to export meat to the UK if there is any risk of it being contaminated with foot-and-mouth, which led the authorities investigating the disease's source to conclude that, in all probability, it had entered the country in illegally imported meat.

A worrying thought indeed. But anyone thinking that was a once-in-a-lifetime mishap should speak to a pig farmer about the source of the classical swine fever outbreak last year.

The investigators of that outbreak traced the first case to an outdoor pig farm adjacent to a public footpath. All the evidence led the scientists to conclude that someone had illegally brought pigmeat into the country, probably from the far East, and that some of that pigmeat had been discarded in the pig field next to the footpath.

That, seemingly trivial, incident threatened to end pork production in the UK.

Within the space of 12 months, two highly virulent and devastating animal diseases have been imported into the UK.

How many more diseases have to be imported into the UK, farmers are asking, before the Government will take action and secure our borders?

In some respects, we have been fortunate that the diseases imported so far have not affected human health. But how long will it be before some of the lethal diseases present in less developed countries are allowed to slip across our borders?

It will come as no surprise, therefore, to learn that the NFU launched a campaign and petition recently to highlight the issue of illegally imported foodstuffs. Its objective is two fold - to educate travellers on what can and cannot be carried in their luggage, and to lobby the Government to implement proper controls and procedures to prevent plants, seeds and animal products from illegally entering our country.

NFU representatives in Yorkshire and the North East will soon be meeting those responsible for protecting our country from illegal imports - the Port Health Authorities (PHA) - to discuss the problems.

But a similar such meeting has already occurred at Gatwick Airport recently and it revealed some disturbing incidences.

NFU representatives were told of a joint customs and PHA initiative at the airport which targeted 10 planes from West Africa. During the initiative the authorities seized some 1.2 tonnes of animal origin product from only 104 passengers.

Among other seizures recently included a small consignment (six) of smoked 'grass cutter rats' illegally imported in personal baggage. The rats can be bought for around 50p each on the streets in West Africa, but retail for about £20-£30 in the UK.

Another up and coming illegal meat is known as 'welly meat' which is a hide chew. It can be bought for a few pence on the streets of West Africa, but will sell for around £1 in the UK.

There is clearly money to be made from illegally importing meat and food into the UK, and while the Port Health Authorities continue to suffer from inadequate resources, our country will continue to attract smugglers of illegal produce.

Port Health Officers also complain they do not have sufficient powers to deter shipments of illegal food. While customs and excise can, and do, destroy seized goods, people caught trying to ship in illegal food have the choice of re-shipping it back to where it came from.

The key messages of the NFU's 'Stamp Out Illegal Imports' campaign are:

Serious animal, plant and human diseases threaten the UK and our food

Imported diseases such as foot-and-mouth have devastated UK agriculture

No single Government agency is responsible for checking imports

There are inadequate resources and staffing at ports of entry

There is a lack of awareness amongst travellers and shippers about what can and can't be brought into the UK

Government needs to allocate more resources and tighten port controls