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The government in Bratislava decided to declare a nationwide state of emergency at an extraordinary meeting on Tuesday in connection with cases of foot-and-mouth disease (FMD) in Slovakia, Slovak public news agency TASR reported.
The outbreak of the highly contagious disease affecting livestock was confirmed last week in cattle farms in three municipalities in the southern part of Slovakia, in the Dunajská Streda (Dunaszerdahely) district. In the affected region, and in particular in three municipalities, Medveďov (Medve), Ňárad (Csiliznyárad), and Baka (Baka), emergency measures, including compulsory disinfection and restrictions on animal movements, have already been imposed over the weekend and compulsory slaughter of affected livestock has begun by official order.
The Slovak Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development, Richard Takáč, announced on Tuesday that the disease had been confirmed in a new municipality, Lúč na Ostrove, which is in the neighborhood of the previously affected municipalities.
This is the first outbreak of the contagious disease in Slovakia in 50 years and the situation is very serious, according to both the Slovak Agriculture Minister and Prime Minister Robert Fico.
The Slovak Prime Minister announced that the financial damage caused by the outbreak would be fully compensated by the government. He stressed that
the rescue and renewal of livestock was in the national interest of the state and would be pursued, even if it meant amending the budgets of other departments.
He expressed the hope that the damage caused will not exceed ten million euros.
The outbreaks in Slovakia have led to the introduction of new measures by Hungarian Chief Veterinary Officer Szabolcs Pásztor in Győr-Moson-Sopron county (northwestern Hungary, bordering Slovakia). A grazing ban will be in force in the 10 km border strip until April 7, and pigs must be slaughtered in the restricted areas. Backyard farmers may opt for home slaughter, but sampling will also be carried out in these cases.
Meanwhile, it was reported by Telex on Wednesday that the disease has appeared in another cattle farm in Hungary, in Levél, near Mosonmagyaróvár, in Győr-Moson-Sopron County. The local cattle farm has 2,300 animals, all of which now have to be slaughtered. Kisbajcs, where the FMD appeared first at the beginning of March, is only 50 kilometers away from there.
FMD reappeared in Hungary in the first week of March 2025, after 50 years. It is a highly contagious viral disease affecting mainly even-toed ungulates (e.g. cattle, pigs, sheep, goats, buffaloes, wild ruminants).
The main symptoms of the disease include fever, loss of appetite, salivation, and the appearance of blisters in the mouth and on the tips of the feet.
In Hungary, the outbreak occurred on a cattle farm in Kisbajcs (Győr-Moson-Sopron county), where an immediate closure was ordered and the complete eradication of the herd started. Following the outbreak, restrictions have been imposed on the transport of animals, Agroinform reported. Hungary has lost its free status as registered with international organizations, and several countries have introduced import restrictions on live animals and products from Hungary. In addition, until further notice, the movement of cattle, sheep, goats, pigs, and other even-toed ungulates from Hungary to other EU Member States and third countries outside the EU is prohibited. Within the protection and surveillance zone, hunting is prohibited, and hiking trails and zoos are not allowed to be visited either.
Via MTI, Agroinform, Telex, Featured photo via Pixabay