FARMERS took their campaign against illegally imported food to the River Tees port health authority in Middlesbrough on Monday.

The delegation was taking part in a day of action at seaports around the UK to persuade the government to step up border controls.

Scientists believe that both foot-and-mouth disease and classical swine fever, which hit the pig industry last year, entered the UK via illegally imported meat.

The NFU's "stamp out illegal imports" campaign was launched to highlight the issue of illegally imported foodstuffs.

It aims to educate travellers about what they can and cannot bring into the country, while also lobbying the government to implement proper controls to prevent plants, seeds and animal products illegally entering the country.

Mr John Rider, North Riding and Durham NFU county chairman, led the Middlesbrough delegation.

"The farming industry has paid dearly for the inadequate import controls," he said. "We have to do everything humanly possible to prevent animal and plant diseases from ever slipping into the UK again."

At Teesport, the port health authority seized nearly six tonnes of illegal animal products last year, including chicken stock cubes, corned beef and fish products.

Mr Stuart Milner, chief port health officer, said it was a significant problem. "Some exporters make a deliberate attempt to conceal their products in plain or false packaging and our powers are limited," he said.

"If illegally imported animal products are found in a container, we should have the powers to destroy the entire contents of that container. That would serve as a proper deterrent to exporters.

"At the moment, animal products we seize are allowed to be shipped back to the country of origin, usually Nigeria. The exporter can then put those animal products back on to another ship destined for anywhere in Europe."