Authorities and other stakeholders should work together to prevent the spread of foot-and-mouth disease, which has, among other things, pushed up beef prices.
A few months ago there was optimism that the spread had been contained.
At the end of January, the agriculture department announced there had been no new outbreaks of foot and mouth disease after the festive season. It said the only provinces with unresolved outbreaks were the Eastern Cape and KwaZulu-Natal. The World Organisation for Animal Health officially declared FMD outbreaks in all other previously affected provinces as resolved and closed.
However, the situation changed in March when the agriculture department announced the disease had now spread beyond the initial Disease Management Area (DMA) declared in KwaZulu-Natal in 2021.
Agriculture minister John Steenhuisen extended the boundaries of the DMA in a measure aimed at controlling the movement of cloven-hoofed animals and their derived products in affected areas.
As if that were not enough, cases of FMD were reported in May, first on a farm in the Gert Sibande municipality in Mpumalanga, which was identified as a result of a traceback from an auction in KZN. But there were no signs that this outbreak spread to adjacent farms or other linked locations.
There were also new cases detected in Gauteng. Earlier this month, a case of FMD was confirmed at Karan Beef's feedlot facility in Heidelberg, the largest such facility in the country. This week, the North West agriculture department confirmed cases of FMD on two farms.
These new outbreaks occurred despite efforts by the department to curb the spread of the disease, including ordering 900,000 vaccines to cover KwaZulu-Natal, while assessment, as well as forward and backwards tracing of the outbreak in Gauteng, was ongoing.
Owners or managers of the animals must take all reasonable steps to prevent their animals from becoming infected with the disease and to prevent the spread of any disease from their animals or land to other animals or other properties
What should happen is that owners or managers of the animals must take all reasonable steps to prevent their animals from becoming infected with the disease and to prevent the spread of any disease from their animals or land to other animals or other properties.
The department had said essential biosecurity measures include limiting and/or postponing the introduction of new animals if at all possible and, if necessary, only introducing animals from known clean farms with a health declaration. Other essential measures include:
- preventing nose-to-nose contact of farm animals with animals outside the farm;
- maintaining secure farm boundaries; and
- restricting access for people and vehicles as much as possible.
If owners could adhere to these measures, there is hope that the spread of the disease will be curbed. There is also hope that a permanent solution to curb the spread of the disease will be found.
Last week the cabinet announced that plans are under way to establish a Biosecurity Council that will bring together the police, veterinarians, scientists, the Border Management Authority and captains of industry to better respond to future outbreaks and manage the related risks.
This step should be undertaken as soon as possible to ensure that the bans from the biggest importers of South African beef, including China, are lifted.
Would you like to comment on this article?
Sign up (it's quick and free) or sign in now.
Please read our Comment Policy before commenting.