Disease lab resumes making drugs

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The drug company whose vaccines are linked to the inquiry into the recent outbreak of foot-and-mouth disease has been allowed to re-start production.

Merial Animal Health said it had the go-ahead from the Veterinary Medicines Directorate to use a non-live virus.

The company shares the Pirbright laboratory complex in Surrey with the Institute for Animal Health.

An interim report found there was a "strong probability" the complex was the source of the outbreak.

Strain 'identical'

The company halted vaccine production on 4 August after an outbreak of foot-and-mouth disease was confirmed on a farm near Guildford.

Merial will not be able to resume manufacturing vaccines using live virus until the government has considered the two investigations into the source of the outbreak.

The initial Health and Safety Executive report confirmed the strain of the disease found at the first farm hit by the outbreak was identical to that being worked on at both the Institute for Animal Health and Merial.

In a statement, Merial said: "We are eager to learn the findings of the investigations into the cause of the foot-and-mouth disease outbreak, and we continue to work with the investigators as required.

"After continuous examination of our systems we have found no evidence that the outbreak in Surrey can be traced to any failure in our bio-security procedures or equipment."