A PIG farm near Malvern has been put under quarantine by Government officials after animals were sent to an abattoir infected with foot-and-mouth.

Hill Farm Pigs in Welland is one of four sites in the county under investigation by the Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food.

Farmer Roger Cousins was dealt the blow after he sent four sows to Cheale Meats in Essex where the infection was discovered.

And although no trace of the disease has been found at the farm, Mr Cousins was forced to disinfect the entrance.

MAFF inspectors will revisit the farm on Thursday, March 15 to carry out a further probe. Mr Cousins said he was keeping his fingers crossed.

"We've put down the disinfected straw mats and we've got signs up keeping people off the farm but there's very little we can do," he said. "It's in the lap of the gods ."

He said he hoped to not lose any money on the stock, claiming he could fatten the porkers over the next three weeks before selling them on for bacon.

Mr Cousins blamed the rash of smaller abattoir closures for the virus' rampant spread.

"Now we're left with big plants and the pigs, sheep and cattle have to be trawled hundreds of miles to them, breathing out all their bugs," he said.

MAFF would not disclose the location of the other three quarantined farms, but confirmed no infected sites had been found in Worcestershire.

The county council has already looked at stationing decontamination facilities where roads cross open land at Castlemorton.

The news broke as Llancloudy farmer Kevin Feakins, forced to slaughter 270 cattle and 650 sheep after a foot-and-mouth outbreak, learnt he would receive just £30 for each of the 3,400 sheep he has exported to France - a third of their value.

MP Paul Keetch raised the issue in the Commons, calling on Agriculture Minister Nick Brown to make a statement.

"The French authorities are telling the British Embassy in Paris that Mr Feakins will receive only FF300 per sheep, which is approximately one third of their value," Mr Keetch told MPs.

AN award-winning Malvern sausage maker could be forced to suspend production due to pork and lamb shortages.

Chrys Titshall, who owns Malvern Country Meals, set up Teme Vale Victuallers at the beginning of the year to cope with demand for his champion sausages. But the new business is now under threat as a result of the foot-and-mouth crisis.

Mr Titshall is pinning his ho-pes on the Government agreeing to the movement of livestock under licence next week.

"The bulk of our pork comes direct from the farm and if we are not able to get that, we will have to suspend production of the recipes that have made our name over the last few years," said Mr Titshall.

"A business is at its most vulnerable in the first year. We are now three months into that and we've had to put everything on hold because of a situation outside our control. The potential long-term implications don't bear thinking about."

Mr Titshall said he had never used imported pork, but may now have to consider it.

"We serve three to four customers direct from the business and we are able to still serve them for the next week or two but there is a question mark after that," he added.

"We had to wrestle with the dilemma of whether to offer our customers nothing or whether to use imported pork, but that really is a question for the future. We are pinning all our hopes on the Government agreeing to the transport of livestock under licence."