(Reuters) – Slovakia declared an emergency situation on Tuesday, making it easier to enact measures to prevent the spread of cases of foot and mouth disease (FMD) after infections were detected in the southern part of the country, the government office said on its website.
Officials discovered the cases at three farms last week. The infections were the first in half a century, and come after neighbouring Hungary reported cases earlier in March.
Foot and mouth disease poses no danger to humans but causes fever and mouth blisters in cloven-hoofed ruminants such as cattle, swine, sheep and goats, and outbreaks often lead to trade restrictions.
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An outbreak of FMD in Saskatchewan in 1952 was the last time the disease has been reported in Canada.
If Canada, with its significantly larger livestock sector, saw a major outbreak like that today, it could be even more costly — to the tune of $65 billion, said Karen Schmid, the beef production and extension lead with Alberta Beef Producers in a recent interview with Glacier FarmMedia.
Canada closed its border to some German products after a Jan. 10 outbreak of foot-and-mouth disease in water buffalo.
