UK bans livestock imports from Hungary and Slovakia after foot-and-mouth outbreak

The UK government has banned imports of some meat and dairy products from Hungary and Slovakia following a confirmed case of foot-and-mouth disease (FMD).

Cattle, pigs, sheep, goats, and other non-domestic ruminants and porcines like deer and their untreated products, such as fresh meat and dairy, have been banned after a case was found on a cattle farm in the Northwest of Hungary, near the border with Slovakia.

Affected goods must be pre-notified, and wider border systems will prevent consignments from entering Britain, according to the government. The ban is in addition to restrictions already in place for equivalent exports from Germany following an outbreak in a water buffalo herd in Brandenburg in January.

Under the ban, travelers can no longer bring meat, milk, dairy products, hay, or straw from Hungary and Slovakia into the UK. 

The UK’s chief veterinary officer has urged livestock keepers to remain vigilant to the clinical signs of FMD. There are currently no cases in Britain. 

Highly contagious FMD

FMD is a highly contagious viral disease of cattle, sheep, pigs, and other cloven-hoofed animals such as wild boar, deer, llamas, and alpacas, but poses no risk to human or food safety. 

Livestock keepers are being advised to be “absolutely rigorous” about their biosecurity. 

UK chief veterinary officer Dr. Christine Middlemiss says: “We remain in contact with our Hungarian counterparts to understand the latest situation following their confirmation of a single case of foot and mouth disease. Measures are now being taken to contain and eradicate the outbreak.”

“I would urge livestock keepers to exercise the utmost vigilance for signs of disease, follow scrupulous biosecurity, and report any suspicion of disease immediately to the Animal and Plant Health Agency.”

Farming minister Daniel Zeichner says the government “will not hesitate” to add additional countries to the list if the disease spreads.

He adds: “We will continue to keep the situation under review, working closely with the Hungarian and Slovakian authorities.”

The government recently announced plans to invest £200 million (US$257.6 million) in the UK’s main research and laboratory testing facilities at Weybridge to increase protection against animal disease.

The F&B industry has repeatedly criticized the government for inadequate resources to combat food security risks at Britain’s post-Brexit borders.