WHEN news spread that healthy animals at holdings in south Herefordshire were to be slaughtered, local residents soon closed ranks against MAFF representatives when they called on local farms.

And the revolt gained momentum when more than 200 people from the close-knit communities of Goodrich, Coppet Hill and Marstow held a demonstration on the dual carriageway bridge at Whitchurch on Saturday morning.

Their cause was against what they describe as the unnecessary mass cull of healthy livestock. On the road from Wilton roundabout to the Symonds Yat junction lorries travelled at a few miles an hour, slowing traffic for about five miles.

The banner-waving farmers and civilians are calling on the Government to reconsider a mass vaccination programme.

"It was a very successful protest about the senseless killing of healthy animals which is totally immoral," said Sally Tottle, one of the organisers. "We hope that MAFF will back off now. Most smaller farmers want to have their stock vaccinated rather than slaughtered needlessly."

She said that although motorists had been slowed and there were queues a few miles long, most in the jam showed their support by beeping horns and voicing support. "Public support was tremendous," she said. "People have had no hesitation in supporting us because for sometime they have wanted to do something and until now the main animal organisations have not really done anything."

The strong feeling against healthy animals being slaughtered came to a head in the area last week when an official turned up at Mr and Mrs Michael Bailey's New Court Farm, Marstow, to value sheep and cattle. Neighbours soon turned up to lend support to the Baileys who refused to let the valuer onto their farm.

A farmer relative of the Baileys said: "If they keep culling the healthy animals in the area we will soon have none left. It is because we are between the Forest of Dean and the Llangarron/St Weonards area but we are some distance from infected premises and there is water and roads acting as divisions between farms."

Chris Stockdale of Orcop, said an alliance of national organisations was now backing vaccination. One of the posters at the Whitchurch protest, said Mr Stockdale, called for the extermination of MAFF.

l In the Forest of Dean, an action group has been set up. The members have a telephone system to farmers and supporters to mobilise farm protests.