A farming family was devastated today after one of their cows was confirmed as having foot-and-mouth disease.

John Croft and his wife Linda, of New Hall Farm, Beamsley, near Bolton Abbey, now face the destruction of hundreds of sheep and cattle. Their daughter Suzie, 25, a nanny, said her parents had farmed for about 17 years and had been renting grazing land nearby. She said: "It seems like a bereavement. There is a feeling of emptiness."

The farm is within the boundaries of the Yorkshire National Park and she said the family had been opposed to its re-opening because they felt the outbreaks were far from over.