Nicosia, Cyprus. New cases of Foot and Mouth disease were detected in 11 livestock units in Livadia and Oroklini, bringing the total number of infected farms to 22, senior veterinary officer Sotiria Georgiadou said on Sunday.
New detections and animal numbers
Georgiadou said the new cases involve around 2,000 animals in Livadia and about 200 animals in three small livestock units in Oroklini. She added that animals identified as infected initially amounted to 13,000.
“Depending on the births of the animals, we may reach up to 16,000 thousand infected animals,” she said.
Vaccines and vaccination rollout
Georgiadou said 529,000 vaccine doses arrived on Saturday from the EU and that distribution to private vets to start vaccinations began on Saturday night.
Infected zone and containment
She said laboratory tests have confirmed that infected units have risen to 22 after 11 more were identified, eight in Livadia and three in Oroklini. She added that all the units are within the infected zone.
Slaughter operations and seasonal factors
Georgiadou said the slaughter of animals in the first unit where the disease was located, a sheep and goat farm in Oroklini, would have been completed, and that a team has moved on to Aradippou.
She said numbers are approximate because the period coincides with births, with young animals being “taken to the slaughterhouse for Easter”.
Response since outbreak in the north
She said that since December 15, when an outbreak was first recorded in the north, the Republic has taken daily actions to prevent the spread of Foot and Mouth disease.
She added that since the first day a case was found in the Republic, more than 513 people, together with the agriculture minister, are at the Zenon Coordination Centre and other control points to contain the disease in the infected area.
Call for compliance with biosecurity measures
Georgiadou said it is important for livestock farmers to protect their property and comply with all indicated biosecurity measures.
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