The number of farms affected by the domestic foot-and-mouth disease has increased to four.
According to the Central Disaster and Safety Countermeasure Headquarters on the 15th, an additional outbreak of foot-and-mouth disease has been confirmed at three cattle farms in Yeongam County, South Jeolla Province. The owners of each farm reported suspected symptoms of foot-and-mouth disease, leading to detailed inspections by the quarantine authorities, resulting in 26 cattle testing positive at the three farms.
The previous day, an outbreak of foot-and-mouth disease was confirmed at a cattle farm in Yeongam County, and the three farms are located 1 to 1.7 km away from this farm. The headquarters has dispatched initial response teams and epidemiological investigators to each farm to control access, conduct clinical inspections, disinfection, and carry out emergency quarantine measures.
In accordance with emergency action guidelines, only livestock confirmed positive for foot-and-mouth disease will be culled at the three farms where the disease was confirmed on this day.
Foot-and-mouth disease is a highly contagious disease that occurs when ruminants such as cattle, pigs, and sheep are infected with the foot-and-mouth disease virus, and it is designated as a Class 1 livestock infectious disease in the country. This is the first confirmed outbreak of foot-and-mouth disease in domestic farms since May 2023.