More than one in three of the 128 farmers whose farms had been hit by the outbreak and who had been interviewed in the survey said they planned to downscale their businesses. Almost half of those questioned thought the government had given them adequate compensation for slaughtered livestock. Agriculture Minister Nick Brown said he understood why those in their 50s nearing retirement would want to sell up. In the meantime seven people in Britain are still waiting to hear if they have contracted the highly contagious virus. Though rampant among livestock it is extremely rare for humans to suffer the ailment, symptomised by blisters in the mouth and on the feet as well as a high temperature.
Experts say direct contact is needed with an infected animal for a human to catch the disease.
Agricultural salesman Robert Brewis caught the disease in 1966, shortly before the last major epidemic. Agriculture Minister Nick Brown told parliament that not all cattle on farms next to an outbreak of the disease would necessarily be culled. In a separate move the junior health minister Lord Hunt of Kings Heath, said the government had known for several weeks about potential public health risks from burning animal carcasses before it published its assessment on the department of health's Web site on Wednesday. Pages will open in a new browser window External sites are not endorsed by CNN Interactive. U.S. Justice Dept.