No new cases, cattle farms continue to be disinfected

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The Minister said that four farms are still affected by the disease, and disinfection and disinfection work is continuing on them. The slaughter of animals is ongoing on the farms in Darnózsel and Dunakilit, and animal health experts, police, disaster relief workers and soldiers continue to participate in the disinfection and protection of the farms. Coordinated work is underway to contain the disease – emphasized the Minister, adding that the disinfection of the farms could be completed by Saturday. Targeted measures are in place within a ten-kilometer radius of the four livestock farms and nationwide in order to minimize the chance of the virus spreading. István Nagy highlighted that the epidemiological investigation is being carried out with great effort, and according to primary information, it cannot be ruled out that the foot-and-mouth disease virus was artificially created, which raises serious questions. The origin of the virus is being examined in a laboratory.

The minister emphasized that the country is facing an extraordinary animal health situation, which is causing difficulties for many

“We are not killing these animals for fun, but to stop the virus and protect the Hungarian population from this highly contagious disease,” he said, adding that the most suitable location for protection is the Bábolna septic tank. “We understand the protests against this, we understand that no one is happy if these animals are buried next to or near their settlement, but there are already such disinfection procedures that the burial of these animals does not pose a danger to anyone,” he said. He emphasized that it is important that animal keepers strictly and consistently comply with all animal health rules and epidemic prevention regulations. He detailed: only those whose presence is essential should enter the animal farm, all vehicles entering and leaving must be thoroughly disinfected, everyone must use clean work clothes and footwear, and it is mandatory to use a black and white changing room near the animals. The tools and machines used for animal care must be cleaned regularly and cannot be loaned, no one should use feed or litter from other farms, and the farm must be fenced off to prevent the livestock from coming into contact with wild animals, he listed.

István Nagy indicated that farmers can count on the government’s help

All financial and human resources are available for protection and restarting, the government’s goal is to restore production on cattle farms as soon as possible. A government decree on compensation will be issued in the near future, the state compensation system will cover the damage to farms to a significant extent – he said. He added: the value of the killed animals will be reimbursed to the owner, the agricultural damage mitigation fund is available, the state will take over the wages of employees from the state wage guarantee, and a loan moratorium will be introduced on interest and capital. The costs related to the elimination of the infection, the killing of animals, the disposal of animal carcasses, the purchase of necessary equipment and tools, the destruction of infected materials and disinfection will be provided by the Hungarian budget – he listed. All this serves the purpose of enabling all farms to restart, which is also important for the Hungarian national economy, he emphasized, adding: “the government undertakes to provide support for the resettlement of livestock of farmers affected by the epidemic and for covering the costs related to the epidemiological development of livestock farms.” The Minister of Agriculture called it a huge thing that not a single pig farm was infected with the foot-and-mouth disease virus.

MTI