A SUSPECTED outbreak of foot and mouth disease on a Withnell farm proved to a false alarm, Ministry of Agriculture officials said last night.

The farm in the Abbey Village area was under investigation for some time, but tests on cattle proved to be negative.

But Rob Paul, Divisionary Veterinary Manager for Lancashire, said a further suspected outbreak at a farm in Great Harwood was still being investigated, with the results of samples taken on Monday still not back.

He added that it was far to early to say whether there was a potential link with the original outbreak in the area at Ollerton Farm.

A Great Harwood meat processing plant already hit by the foot and mouth crisis has discovered imported beef contaminated with spinal cord for the second time, against the EC's BSE rules.

Great Harwood Food Products, part of Slingers, found banned spinal cord material in 41 forequarters of Italian beef when they started unpacking the consignment.

A further 13 quarters at the bottom of the container were so badly contaminated they had to be condemned.

Under European Union regulations to combat BSE, spinal cord material is included as material at risk of carrying the disease and must be removed from the animal when it is slaughtered.

The Italian beef was part of a consignment of 204 forequarters from animals under 30 months old.

It is the 12th breach of the regulations discovered in the UK since January 17 this year, and the second to hit the Lancashire processing plant.

On March 9 spinal cord was found in 29 quarters of beef imported from Spain at Great Harwood Food products.