SOUTH Korean authorities on Saturday slaughtered thousands of animals after
outbreaks of highly contagious foot-and-mouth disease.
With the football World Cup finals due to start on May 31, co-hosts Japan
immediately banned imports of South Korean pork, beef and mutton after the
disease was confirmed.
South Korea has effectively halted all beef and pork exports by suspending
quarantine inspections.
Japan had only last Monday lifted a ban on South Korean pork exports caused
by a previous foot-and-mouth outbreak in 2000.
Quarantine authorities have killed and buried 8,700 pigs at a farm at
Anseong about 80 kilometres south of Seoul and 45 cows at a nearby farm,
according to the agriculture and forestry ministry.
Animals at other nearby farms could also be killed, officials said.
Authorities have banned all movement of livestock in the district and
started a major disinfectant campaign in Gyeonggi province which surrounds
the capital.
But the agriculture ministry said a new foot-and-mouth outbreak had been
confirmed in Jincheon county, 20 kilometres south of Anseong.
Some 50 piglets at the Jincheon farm showed foot-and-mouth symptoms of high
fever and blisters on their hoofs and mouths. All the animals at the farm
will now be slaughtered.
Quarantine experts said the pigs in Anseong were infected with the ”O1” type
virus of foot-and-mouth, the same virus that hit South Korea in 2000.
The latest outbreak comes just ahead of an expected invasion of foreign
football fans for the World Cup finals which are being held in Korea and
Japan from May 31.
Agriculture ministry officials said the outbreak was being taken very
seriously but as it was in rural areas away from the 10 cities where
football matches would be played they hoped there would be no impact on the
tournament.
But in line with international veterinary regulations it has alerted other
countries about the outbreak.
In Tokyo, a Japanese agriculture official said that imports of South Korean
meat had been suspended because of the disease outbreak.
”We decided on Friday to temporarily stop issuing quarantine certificates
for imports of pork, beef and mutton as well as products derived from these
meats from South Korea,” said the Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries
Ministry official. – Sapa-AFP