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BRUSSELS, Belgium (AP) -- The European Commission said Tuesday it would ease restrictions on the movement of animals and animal products from Britain after an EU veterinary panel said last month's outbreak of food-and-mouth disease was now "fully contained." The EU head office said however that the expert panel decided to keep in place a trade ban for animals which had been within the zone where the outbreaks occurred, in Surrey county, in southern England. Other meat products or live animal exports from outside that zone will now be allowed to move freely within the 27-nation bloc. "The foot-and-mouth disease situation in the UK is now considered to be fully contained," said an EU statement. It said there were no further outbreaks reported since the second case was confirmed on a farm within the initial infected zone on August 7. British authorities said faulty drains, construction work, heavy rain and vehicle movements at an animal health facility where workers handled live viruses probably led to an outbreak of foot-and-mouth disease in southern England, according to an official report released last week. Health officials declared Surrey county, where the outbreak was detected Aug. 3, free of the disease. The outbreak led to Britain slaughtering about 600 animals and suspending exports of livestock, meat and milk products for nearly three weeks. The Commission said it urged all EU governments to ensure strict rules are enforced for virus-handling laboratories to ensure no future accidental releases of viruses.
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