Korea has first foot-and-mouth disease in over 4 years at two cattle farms

A disinfection vehicle is deployed to disinfect the cattle farms in Cheongju. [Photo by Yonhap]

Two cattle farms in Cheongju, about 110 kilometers south of Seoul, have confirmed foot-and-mouth cases, the first outbreak of the disease in South Korea in more than four years, after the Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs received suspicious reports from farms and conducted detailed inspections, the ministry said Wednesday. The last case was in January 2019.

The ministry plans to cull about 360 cattle at the two farms in accordance with emergency action guidelines. It also issued a temporary suspension of movement order for workers and vehicles at beef cattle farms and livestock-related facilities nationwide until 0:00 a.m. Saturday to prevent farm-to-farm transmission. Fifty-six disinfection resources, including disinfection vehicles, will be deployed to disinfect cattle farms and surrounding roads in seven cities and counties, including Daejeon and Sejong, which are adjacent to Cheongju.