The 2001 Foot and Mouth Disease epidemic in the UK, during which millions of animals were culled over a nine-month period, had a devastating and long-lasting impact on individuals and communities. In 2002 the European Parliament noted that policymakers need to have a better understanding of the social and psychological impact of such events on adults and children, on farmers and non-farmers. Although many studies about FMD have been published since 2001, this is the first to offer a detailed examination of the various ways in which the outbreak affected the fabric of rural life and rural culture across classes and across generations. Drawing on the experiences of farmers, the media, artists, writers, children and churches, this collection provides a space for academic inquiry, political and poetic reflection and artistic expression.

List of platesList of figuresList of tablesList of contributorsPrefaceList of abbreviationsI. Introduction and historical overview1. From mayhem to meaning: an introduction to the cultural meaning of the 2001 outbreak of Foot and Mouth Disease in the UK - Martin Döring and Brigitte Nerlich2. The historical roots of FMD control in Britain, 1839-2001 - Abigail WoodsII. Experiences expressed3. Farmers/writers: 'They may be experts but they know nowt' - Pamela Sandiford4. Farmers: FMD and the abuse of democratic process - Susan Atkinson5. Media: FMD in the West Country and the role of the Western Morning News - Barrie Williams6. Artists and photographers: trembling representations - picturing FMD - Michael Madden (artwork) and Ian Geering (photography)III. Experiences analysed7. Farmers and valuers: divisions and divisiveness and the social cost of FMD - a sociological analysis of FMD in one locality - Sam Hillyard8. Churches: the response of local churches to FMD - Lewis Burton9. Children: 'Mary had a little lamb...' - trauma, stress and coping during the 2001 FMD crisis, as seen through the medium of children's poems - Martin DöringIV. Experiences, contexts, analysis10. Biosecurity: biosecurity and idyllic England in millennial Britain - Samantha Twigg Johnson11. Life changes: altered lifescapes - Ian Convery, Cathy Bailey, Maggie Mort and Josephine Baxter12. Technology: FMD 2001 - lessons emerging from county council websites - Briony Oates13. Technology: the information and social needs of Cumbrian farmers during the UK 2001 FMD outbreak and the role of information and communication technologies (ICTs) - Chris Hagar14. Media: conceptualising Foot and Mouth Disease - the socio-cultural role of metaphors, frames and narratives - Brigitte Nerlich15. Rumour: viral cows and viral culture? Towards an explanation of rumour in the 2001 UK outbreak of FMD - Nick Wright and Brigitte Nerlich16. Disaster: a further species of trouble? Disaster and narrative - John Law and Vicky SingletonV. Epilogue17. Speaking truth to power: Foot and Mouth and the future of agriculture and its communities - Jules PrettyIndex