BUTCHERS fear their businesses will grind to a halt by the weekend because of panic buying and the disruption to meat supplies.

Traders searched desperately yesterday for alternative supplies, as abattoirs looked likely to run out of stock.

Clive Bowman Butchers, at Spennymoor, County Durham, began rationing after supplier, Thompsons Abattoir, of Witton-le-Wear, became caught up in the contamination scare.

Carol Bowman said: "We are just letting customers have the amount of meat they normally buy. Someone came in to buy 5lb of mince for their freezer, and we had to tell them they couldn't. We don't know yet if we'll get any more meat."

Dobson's butchers, at Tow Law, County Durham, said customers may soon feel the strain.

Butcher Patrick Burke said: "We've just got to hope they get it sorted as soon as possible. If we sell out this weekend and supplies are very short, it's going to be dog eat dog."

One supplier pushed up prices by about a third, according to Jason Whittaker, of Mr Meat in Bishop Auckland.

"If the ban on cattle movement is not lifted next week, we'll have to shut. Our catering orders have been more than usual. Poultry has also shot up in price, so I cannot get hold of any for tomorrow."

Jewitt's Abattoirs, at Spennymoor, which supplies butchers from North Yorkshire to the Borders, felt the bite of the ban on cattle movement yesterday.

Michael Jewitt said: "We've finished killing today and we'll be at a standstill come Friday. We'll have absolutely nothing to do then, and 50 staff to pay.

"I don't know where we will get meat from, we will have to look overseas."