FOOT AND MOUTH - ''THOSE WHO WERE ENTITLED TO COMPENSATION HAVE ALREADY BEEN PAID'' SAY THE VETERINARY SERVICES - AT THE END OF SEPTEMBER, REACTIVATION OF FARMS - Filenews 21/8
All those who were entitled to be compensated for the slaughter of animals for foot-and-mouth disease have already been compensated, said the Director of Veterinary Services, Christodoulos Pipis, in response to statements made earlier by a representative of the breeders.
The President of the "Voice of Livestock Breeders", Neophytos Neophytou, had stated that the payment of compensation to four livestock farmers was pending, while three others received only 10-15% of what they were entitled to.
Mr. Pipis said that only three owners of four farms were not compensated, who were informed by him that their compensation could not proceed. As he explained, any compensation decision by the Veterinary Services must be legal, as stated in the opinion of the Legal Service, which determines the framework for interpreting the provisions of the law.
"Due to the deficiencies that have been observed in these farms in relation to the population of animals declared by the breeders themselves, with the animals we found during the on-site inspection before killing and their ownership status, the decision was made on compensation or not," he said.
"Those who are entitled under the law to be compensated have already been compensated. Both the Minister and I have said it repeatedly," he said, noting that the Service cannot proceed with compensation outside the framework of legality.
Regarding the livestock farmers who were compensated only 10-15% of what they expected to get, Mr. Pipis said that it is for the same reason that the rest were not compensated.
All those who were entitled to be compensated for the slaughter of animals for foot-and-mouth disease have already been compensated, said the Director of Veterinary Services, Christodoulos Pipis, in response to statements made earlier by a representative of the breeders.
The President of the "Voice of Livestock Breeders", Neophytos Neophytou, had stated that the payment of compensation to four livestock farmers was pending, while three others received only 10-15% of what they were entitled to.
Mr. Pipis said that only three owners of four farms were not compensated, who were informed by him that their compensation could not proceed. As he explained, any compensation decision by the Veterinary Services must be legal, as stated in the opinion of the Legal Service, which determines the framework for interpreting the provisions of the law.
"Due to the deficiencies that have been observed in these farms in relation to the population of animals declared by the breeders themselves, with the animals we found during the on-site inspection before killing and their ownership status, the decision was made on compensation or not," he said.
"Those who are entitled under the law to be compensated have already been compensated. Both the Minister and I have said it repeatedly," he said, noting that the Service cannot proceed with compensation outside the framework of legality.
Regarding the livestock farmers who were compensated only 10-15% of what they expected to get, Mr. Pipis said that it is for the same reason that the rest were not compensated.
As he explained, there were cases where either much fewer animals were found than were declared in the farm, without their absence being justified, or animals that were kept in their farms beyond what was allowed. In other cases, a large number of animals were found that were undeclared, or even animals that were not marked.
He also noted that the Veterinary Services could not have been aware of the discrepancies between the declared animals and those that were finally found. "Each breeder is responsible for declaring the population of his animals and keeping the information regarding his livestock farm updated at all times, for the number of animals there and the number he moves either from or to his farm, or for slaughter," he said.
"The population declared in the database of the Veterinary Services had to correspond to the actual number of animals that would be on their farm," he noted.
Regarding the placement of animals in farms for reactivation, Mr. Pipis rejected the claim of the breeders that this is scheduled to start from September 1.
As he explained, "this has not been determined. The reactivation of livestock farmers is an issue that will be finalized with the team of Mr. Malas, which undertook the study for the reconstruction of livestock farming and the reactivation of livestock breeders, in combination with whether the affected livestock farmers have carried out the necessary cleaning of their farms, their disinfection, the removal of manure and its proper management, in order to make it safe to be dispersed in the fields for fertilization purposes."
Responding to allegations of a delay in reactivation, he said that the interval of 4-5 months that has elapsed is reasonable, given what needs to be done.
"No timetable has been set for the time that we start on September 1," he said, stressing that it depends not only on whether each individual breeder has taken the appropriate actions, but also on the surrounding farms, in order to avoid relapse phenomena. "All those involved must be at the same health level in order to have the corresponding promotion of the process and its successful conclusion," he said.
Asked if livestock farmers have taken these actions, he said that a sufficient number of livestock farmers have already proceeded with these measures. "We are working at the level of the province of Larnaca and Nicosia to confirm the procedure on a case-by-case basis and by region, so that the placement of the animals can begin," he said.
He added that the officials of the veterinary services are in consultation with the breeders and are carrying out on-site checks to check their compliance, so that the process can proceed.
Then, and after the farms have been disinfected, indicator animals will be placed on the farms for a period of at least 40 days, to check and confirm that there is no live virus in the farm to re-infect the animals that are going to enter.
Answering when it is estimated that this process will begin, he said that it is expected around the end of September.
Mr. Pipis also referred to whether the animals that will be placed must be vaccinated or not. As he said, this will be decided by scientists, based on what the protocols provide.
As he explained, "the placement of unvaccinated animals is subject to a more objective conclusion to confirm that the area is completely safe and there is no live infectious natural virus. We want to ensure that the farms that will be reactivated are disinfected, sanitized and there is no risk of contamination of the animals that will be placed," he said.
He noted, however, that the placement of vaccinated or unvaccinated animals will also depend on their availability.
