Herd mentality

THE outbreak of foot-and-mouth disease, which has caused so much panic across the UK, has far wider implications than just the slaughter of isolated herds of sheep, cows and pigs. Of course, that is bad enough for farmers already struggling after the BSE - or mad cow disease - scares of recent years but at least on this occasion it seems the authorities have been quick to acknowledge the extent of the situation and promise at least some level of compensation to those whose herds have been destroyed.