BUSINESSES hit by foot-and-mouth disease will be able to bid for grants to help promote their trade.

But firms in Herefordshire will have to prove that at least 50 per cent of turnover has been lost as a result of the disease.

The money will be available to fund innovative marketing and promotional campaigns to encourage visitors back to the rural area.

There will also be assistance for threatened but otherwise viable businesses in the form of help with promotion, marketing and other activities.

Around £5m is to be made available immediately from European Structural Funds to help Herefordshire and Shropshire firms.

Support for businesses in other parts of the region will be made through Advantage West Midlands, the regional development agency.

Problem

"At this stage we're probably only scratching the surface of the problem, but hopefully we will be able to assist firms in the immediate period," said John Edwards, chief executive of Advantage West Midlands and chairman of the Rural Response Team.

"It's our intention to make the scheme as simple as possible. Firms will be able to contact Business Link and the assessment should be completed over the phone more often than not."

The grants will be available for marketing, advice, training and capital investment.

The marketing and promotional fund will be spent in consultation with the Heart of England Tourist Board and will follow on the initiatives already underway to encourage visitors back to rural areas.

"We've been encouraging people to visit the region, now we want them to pay longer stays," said Mr Edwards.

"We also want to look at how we can start re-building the image of the West Midlands to overseas markets."