Foot-and-mouth disease is spreading at an alarming rate, causing economic suffocation and mass killings of animals. During yesterday's ex officio examination of the issue in the parliamentary Committee on Agriculture, the magnitude of the crisis was revealed, with the general director of the Ministry of Agriculture, Andreas Grigoriou, announcing that the infected units reached 104 in Nicosia and Larnaca.
The news that caused a particular sensation concerns the detection of a new case in a sheep and goat farm in Paliometocho. This is the first sheep and goat unit to be infected in the area, immediately after the virus was detected in three neighbouring pig farms, which confirms the spread of the virus between different species of animals in the same geographical zone.
According to the official data submitted to the Parliament, a total of 104 units have been affected (13 cattle, 88 sheep, goats and 3 pigs). About 37,000 sheep and goats (8.1% of the total population), 2,200 cattle (2.8% of the population) have been slaughtered until yesterday, while 21,000 pigs are in the process of being killed, a number corresponding to 7% of domestic production.
The debate was ignited when ELAM MP, Linos Papagiannis, denounced the illegal transport of animals to Paliometochos. According to the complaint, a truck that received a permit to transport animals to a slaughterhouse two weeks ago, ended up instead in a livestock unit in Paliometochos, raising serious questions about the observance of biosecurity measures.
The director of the Veterinary Services, Christodoulos Pipis, clarified that no such permission was given, confirming that the case is already in the hands of the Police for investigation, while administrative fines have already been imposed.
The MPs expressed their strong dissatisfaction with the Ministry's handling. The chairman of the Committee, AKEL MP, Giannakis Gavriil stated that "it is clear that we did something wrong in the management", asking for immediate information on new, more effective measures.
DISY MP, Charalambos Pazaros, handed over responsibilities for the transport of hay from the occupied territories and called for a stricter containment plan.
Christos Orphanides of DIKO warned that if the protocols are not implemented in the occupied areas, the disease will lead to the extinction of livestock in the free areas.
From the Ecologists' Movement, Charalambos Theopemptou focused on the effects that the crisis will have on the future of halloumi production.
