THE pig farmer at the centre of the foot-and-mouth outbreak appeared in court yesterday to answer charges about his actions.
Pig farmer Bobby Waugh was accused of 16 breaches of animal health at Tynedale Magistrates' Court, in Hexham, Northumberland.
Mr Waugh and his brother Ronald, 60, both from Sunderland, were prosecuted by Northumberland County Council trading standards department over offences relating to Burnside Farm, at Heddon-on-the-Wall.
The pair, whose farm was pinpointed as the probable source of the foot-and-mouth crisis, faced charges under the Animal Health Act 1981 and the Protection of Animals Act 1911.
The most serious of these charges are five offences in which it is alleged they failed to notify officials that their animals had foot-and-mouth.
Magistrates heard that Ronald Waughwas too sick to attend court.
His brother spoke only to confirm his name and date of birth before magistrates adjourned the hearing for a pre-trial review on August 16.
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