Turkey closes livestock markets amid foot-and-mouth disease outbreak: What to know
The Agriculture Ministry has closed all livestock markets to prevent spread of the disease while vaccination efforts are underway.
Turkey said on Wednesday it was shutting down all livestock markets to control the spread of a highly contagious strain of foot-and-mouth disease that is hitting the country’s agricultural sector hard. The government stressed that the measures would not impact food security.
What happened: Turkey’s Agriculture Ministry said in a statement it had detected a new strain of the potentially fatal disease amid the outbreak, which is blamed on animal movement during the Islamic holiday Eid al-Adha. The holiday occurred this year between June 5 and June 9, during which large numbers of livestock are traditionally slaughtered.
The ministry said it had closed all livestock markets to prevent the disease from spreading while the country's animals are vaccinated against the pathogen. Along with livestock markets, the closure includes live animal exchanges, animal collection and sales centers, fairs and festivals.
The ministry said it would gradually lift the restrictions once all the livestock across the country is vaccinated.
“Scientific evaluations have shown that the risk of infection is quite high, especially in animal sales points, through direct contact with animals,” the ministry said. “In addition, indirect contacts through breeders, herders and animal traders and village visits for animal trade can cause the disease to spread to different regions in a short time."
The ministry stressed that food supply security would not be affected by the measures and no disruptions were expected in the distribution of meat and dairy products.
“Our current stocks and production infrastructure are at a level that will meet this process,” the ministry said.
Why it matters: Livestock makes up around 23% of Turkey's agricultural gross domestic product and around 1.5% of the country's total GDP, according to the Food and Agriculture Organization.
Foot-and-mouth disease is not considered zoonotic and cannot be transmitted between humans and animals, and consuming red meat and dairy carries no risk of transmission.
Its mortality rate is low in adult animals at 1-5%, but in younger animals, it can reach 20% or more.
Know more: Agriculture and Forestry Minister Ibrahim Yumakli said on Tuesday that Turkey’s vaccination drive has helped it achieve an 80% reduction in foot and mouth disease cases compared to last year, the Daily Sabah reported.
