Truck loads of foot and mouth carcasses are now arriving by the day in Bradford to be destroyed.

Officials from the Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Foods (MAFF) gave the go-ahead for the military-style operation after discussions with Bradford Council, the Army and police.

The first lorry towing a stainless steel trailer of dead cows covered by a sealed tarpaulin sheet arrived in a rain-soaked Bradford from Cumbria just before 2pm yesterday.

Officials wearing white overalls ushered the vehicle into the yard of renderers P Waddington and Co, under the watchful gaze of the carved bulls heads adorning the plant's blue stone gate posts.

Mike Ellis, a freelance dangerous goods safety adviser, is overseeing the operation.

He spoke to the Telegraph & Argus from the clearance area inside the plant, sat beside two brand new washers and three tumble dryers installed by MAFF to clean the workers' clothes..

He said: "I've taken explosives to Kosovo and transported some of the most dangerous chemicals like cyanide but this is one of the most demanding jobs I've ever done.

"The thing with foot-and-mouth is that you can't see the virus. There are rules and regulations for road transportation, but the requirements laid down by the Government and MAFF far exceed those.

"Once inside the clearance zone all the staff have to change into their work clothes and protective overalls before they go into what we call the 'dirty' area.

"When they come out after completing their shift they have to shower and all their clothes have to be laundered and they make their way back to the clearance area using flipflops."

Mr Ellis said once trucks were inside the plant they had to go through a three-stage disinfection process with the driver remaining in the cab at all time before being allowed back out on the road.

The convoys of carcasses come from Cumbria and Carlisle, but as Mr Ellis remarked, "We don't know where the next outbreak is going to be".

Caf owner Kiki Millios, who runs Mike's caf which overlooks the renderers, said: "I'm leaving here in two weeks time to go and live in Cyprus. They haven't got foot and mouth so I don't really care if they're bringing the carcasses here to be destroyed."