Farmers protest FMD culling

All animals are subject to culling in a farming unit where an incident of foot-and-mouth disease (FMD) has been detected, authorities reiterated on Tuesday as farmers protested the slaughter of their livestock.

The Veterinary Service said that an EU regulation states that, following official confirmation of a Category A disease in an establishment, authorities will order that “all animals of listed species kept in the affected establishment shall be killed as soon as possible on the spot, within the establishment, in such a way as to avoid any risk of spreading the relevant Category A disease agent during and after killing”.

“There are no exemptions wherever a positive case [of foot-and-mouth disease] is identified in a farming unit. Culling is imperative,” the Veterinary Service added.

The department said it understands the concerns of livestock farmers, as the slaughter of their animals affects their livelihood.

Farmers who cooperate with security measures will be compensated, both for the animals culled and animal feel that has been disposed of.

In the Livadia and Aradippou communities, the epicentre of the outbreak, so far 1,300 sheep and goats have been culled, with an additional 2,700 planned by Wednesday.

Authorities say the situation has stabilised, with no new cases of FMD recorded on Tuesday.

However the state of emergency still applies.

“The culling of animals is not subject to approval from livestock farmers, it is a necessary measure,” Veterinary Service officer Sotiria Georgiadou said.

The official said the disease has been contained within a 10km radius, expressing the hope that it will not spread further, “so that we can win the battle”.

Authorities were responding to complaints by affected businesses. A group of around 30 livestock farmers gathered in Livadia on Tuesday protesting what they call indiscriminate culling.

The farmers said that even animals not showing symptoms of the disease are being slaughtered.

Nikoula Georgiou, one of the farmers, told media that at some of the units where culling took place there was “no active virus”.

She added: “This is arbitrariness, not public health. We call for the immediate suspension of the culling, we want reports in writing, transparency and scientific measures such as quarantines and retesting.”

Georgiou said some of the FMD cases identified over the weekend belonged to her farm.

“Someone just came and handed us a piece of paper to sign, to affirm that our animals are sick. There was no name [of an official] on the paper, just a signature, asking us to accept that our animals are sick.”

Another farmer, Spyros Hadjikyriaou, said his livestock have developed antibodies to the disease and show no symptoms.