A FARMER has been fined £2,000 after selling old cattle as young cows fit for human consumption - breaking strict BSE guidelines.

Francis Joseph Clarkson, 61, from Ellel, pleaded guilty at Lancaster Magistrates Court to 15 charges relating to the misrepresentation of the ages of cattle sold for slaughter.

Under the current legislation only animals under 30 months old can be slaughtered for human consumption to prevent BSE in cattle being spread to humans.

But the court heard that three cows sold by Mr Clarkson at Lancaster in February 1999 were accompanied by official documents which suggested they were much younger than was actually the case. The deception was only discovered following the slaughter of the cattle when it was found that two of the animals had ear tags which had been home made by the defendant.

Investigations by the county council's trading standards officers revealed that the defendant had retained the identity papers of three young cows sold by him at Preston the previous year. These papers were then used to lend new identities to the cows sold at Lancaster.

In one case, the paperwork submitted by the defendant indicated an age of less than 13 months but examination of the animal's teeth following slaughter showed its true age to be nearer 36 months old. The court heard that by making the animals appear younger than they were Mr Clarkson was able to sell them as fit for human consumption resulting in a financial gain of over £428.

In a similar prosecution brought by MAFF, Mr Clarkson pleaded guilty to further charges of replacing cattle ear tags without permission in 1998. One of the ear tags had been used by Mr Clarkson 26 years earlier.

He was fined a total of £2,000 and ordered to pay costs to the county council and MAFF of £938.81.

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