Beef producer says more can be done to stop foot & mouth disease as three more cases reported

Vigilance against the spread of foot and mouth disease (FMD) is more critical than ever because the disease is far from under control, a veterinary surgeon said on Thursday.

Dr Shaun Morris said there was a perception that FMD was no longer a threat to the beef industry. “But the reality is that FMD is still rife. What we are seeing on the ground is evidence of disease. It is a massive problem,” Morris said.

His comments follow Wednesday’s announcement by Free State agriculture and rural development MEC Thembeni Nxangisa that three more cases of FMD had been confirmed in the province.

In one case the source was confirmed as a result of the movement of animals from the North West to the Free State.  

“The problem is that the virus induces very mild clinical signs in cattle that are exposed and if a person is not aware of what signs to look for, the disease may go unnoticed in a herd of cattle,”  Morris said.

Roelie van Reenen, supply chain executive at Beefmaster Group, a supplier of beef products to local and global markets, said if FMD was not brought under control the ramifications for the industry were dire.  

“The threat FMD poses to the cattle industry is tremendous. All industry role players need to take their responsibility seriously to help limit the spread of the disease as much as possible, as we cannot expect government authorities alone to clamp down on it,” Van Reenen said.

He said this could be done by limiting the movement of cattle and, when buying cattle, insisting on veterinary inspections and sign-offs.  

Van Reenen said although many industry role players had already gone to great lengths at feedlots and farms to try to limit or prevent the outbreak of disease, such as the installation of bubble or isolation hubs, more needed to be done.  

“If procuring cattle from large gatherings, one way to mitigate the potential of disease outbreak is to insist on biosecurity measures. This may include investigating the biosecurity measures that are in place, as well as insisting that cattle are quarantined for certain periods — a minimum of 28 days — and signed off as healthy and disease-free only by qualified vets.”

In March this year, FMD resulted in China suspending imports from SA of all cloven-hoofed animal goods, including wool, beef and other red meat products.  

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