John Elmore (60) is a sheep and cattle farmer from Omeath, Co Louth. He inherited his 70-acre farm (with access to commonage) from his father. His wife, Kathleen works, part-time as a care assistant in Bessbrook, Co Armagh. They have five children, three of whom - Francis (20), Thomas (17) and Brian (15) - live at home and help out on the farm.
The Outbreak
"When foot-and-mouth disease broke out in the south-east of England, we thought, God help them. We listened to the heartbreaking stories and thought we understood how they felt in their tragic circumstances. But, when the outbreak occurred in Meigh, Co Armagh [February 28th], three miles north of the Border, we were caught in the 10-km exclusion zone. All hell broke loose. People said, let's do anything to prevent it coming in here, as if the border was an iron curtain. There was a 110 per cent response from farmers in this area.
"Everyone was running into shops for disinfectant. The disinfectant mats were put down at farm entrances and outside all public buildings, and farmers didn't move their sheep from one field to another. After a couple of weeks, the Minister started to lift restrictions. I said it was too early to lift the restrictions. The following week, the suspect case at Proleek [Co Louth] was found. We spent two worrying days waiting for the results [which came on March 22nd]. It was 32 days after the Meigh outbreak, and the gestation period of three to 14 days had past. The outbreak here was deemed a secondary outbreak."
The Cull
"Within seconds of hearing the announcement, I saw the end to sheep breeding in this area. The next day the first sheep were culled. The loss of my 200 sheep is more than the loss of the value of the sheep. When a farmer has spent 30 years building a flock, the solution is not as simple as throwing money at him. These sheep were acclimatised to grazing on my mountain; how can you put a value on that? If you buy more sheep, they won't be acclimatised to the area; you can't drive them up the mountain with a dog and come back in two months to bring them down because they won't be there."
The Impact
"I felt abandoned, hurt and saddened, and left the IFA because of the situation here. I had been in the IFA since 1986, a county officer and a member of the disadvantaged area committee and chairman of the national sheep committee.
"There is a lot of misinformation and claims being made of the great job that was done. But what happened in the Cooleys was a disaster and a tragedy. [John Elmore spearheaded the Cooley Foot and Mouth Campaign for Compensation].
"The message that we were all rogues in the Cooleys [when 106 out of 275 farmers were found to have incorrect numbers of sheep] went right across the country. We had no right of reply, no chance to counter it or contradict it. Well, there are rogues everywhere, and rather than our being blamed for what happened, if the Department of Agriculture had been doing its job properly, we wouldn't have as many rogues around. Thousands of sheep have been coming from Scotland - uncertified and unchecked - for the last few years. These sheep are certified in Scotland for slaughter in the North - which is a legitimate trade - but when they come into the Republic and are sold off to France as Irish lamb, it isn't. There was a lot of talk about smuggling, but these lorries are coming freely down the NI from Newry to Dundalk. If that trade hadn't gone on unrestricted, perhaps we would never have had foot and mouth."
The Community
"There were phone calls from all over the country with messages of support and sympathy. And, in the local community, people were a source of comfort and support to each other. That was a great help as we tried to come to terms with our loss."
Getting back to work
"I am half-way to restocking my sheep. We can't take in new sheep and expect them to settle down on open commonage. Also, it is very difficult to put your mind to getting back to work until the compensation issue is put to bed. It is like waiting for an inquest after a death."
