Hungary and Slovakia have taken strict measures to combat the foot-and-mouth disease epidemic, which has led to mass slaughter of livestock. This is reported by Euronews, writes UNN.
Details
It is reported that more than 2,000 cows need to be destroyed on a farm in northern Hungary, where several animals have contracted foot-and-mouth disease.
In connection with the outbreak of the disease that affected pigs, cattle, sheep and goats, the Hungarian authorities established a two-level security zone around the farm, where strict restrictions apply and it is recommended to monitor domestic livestock in private plots.
The outbreak in Level became the second in the country this month: a few weeks ago, 1,600 animals were killed in Kishbajch.
The outbreak of foot-and-mouth disease in Central Europe came as a surprise, as the region has been free of the disease for more than 50 years. At the same time, in January of this year, it reappeared in Germany, and later in Hungary and Slovakia. In response, Slovakia and Hungary have used different methods to combat the infection.
In particular, both countries have created a protection zone with a radius of three kilometers around the epicenter of the epidemic and a 10-kilometer observation zone, where the health of livestock is monitored.
The movement of animals is also prohibited, and the Hungarian authorities have banned hunting in the Győr-Moson medier.
Slovakia closed small border crossing points and set up disinfection points at larger ones.
The slaughter of infected livestock and the disposal of tons of potentially infected animal corpses is also a problem for the authorities.
According to the media, both governments have been criticized: Hungary – for slaughtering more than 1,500 cows near Babolna, which caused concern among local residents, and Slovakia – for transporting carcasses in open trucks.
The Slovak authorities deny these claims.
In addition, 2,300 head of cattle in Level will be vaccinated to prevent the spread of the virus among animals before they are destroyed, which may take most of the week.
Let us remind you
Earlier, UNN wrote that foot-and-mouth disease was detected on a Hungarian farm with 1,400 head of cattle. This is the first such case in half a century.
Prior to that, the State Food and Consumer Service of Ukraine introduced a ban on the import of animal products.
Also, the State Food and Consumer Service and its territorial bodies carry out constant monitoring of the epizootic situation.