Cyprus employers want ban on meat exports lifted after FMD outbreak

The Employers and Industrialists Federation, OEV, has called on the Cyprus government to take all measures to eradicate the foot and mouth disease (FMD) in order to save the farming sector as well as the related production industries, while adding that the ban imposed on Tuesday must be lifted as soon as possible.

OEV also called for the immediate compensation of the farmers whose livestock have been culled in order to prevent their financial demise and to keep the farmers active, while a quick resolve will help overturn any negative image among Cypriot and overseas consumers that could affect other industries as well.

Cyprus was declared a high risk zone Tuesday following the confirmed outbreak of foot and mouth disease, prompting the Standing Committee on the Food Chain and Animal Health to ban all exports of fresh meat, dairy products and livestock from the island. The ban will remain in force until December 15.

Thousands of animals risk being culled in the first outbreak of FMD on the island in more than 40 years, with farmers and opposition parties accusing the government of poor handling of the whole crisis.

EU Health Commissioner Markos Kyprianou’s spokesman Philip Tod told a press conference in Brussels Tuesday that Cyprus had been declared a high-risk zone, therefore all exports of livestock and products from these animals cannot be exported into the EU.

Government officials, aided by two Commission experts from the EU emergency veterinary team, are overseeing the culling of livestock in three farms in Larnaca’s Dromolaxia area that is expected to exceed 2,000 animals this week.

The disease could turn into an epidemic if further tests on samples from a number of farms in Paphos are also confirmed as FMD.

In line with EU legislation, the Cypriot authorities culled the sheep in the affected flocks and established a 3km protection zone and 10km surveillance zone around the infected holding.

Within these zones, stringent movement restrictions apply, surveillance has been stepped up and biosecurity measures have been strengthened. With Cyprus categorised as a high risk zone, there is a standstill on all livestock movement and no live cattle, sheep, goats or pigs, or products from these animals, can be exported from Cyprus, and other member states cannot send any such live animals to Cyprus.

The Commission decision allows some derogations whereby certain safe products (including halloumi cheese, which is heat-treated before leaving the dairy) will still be allowed to be exported.

This comes as a relief to dairy and primarily halloumi producers who had feared a cancellation of export orders that exceed more than CYP 40 mln (EUR 68 mln) a year.

Also, livestock will only be allowed to be moved to slaughterhouses so long as strict animal health conditions are met.

 

n      Partial lift of ban in UK

The Standing Committee also endorsed a Commission proposal for exports of meat, livestock and dairy products to resume from Britain, excluding livestock from the high-risk area around the county of Surrey in southern England where an FMD outbreak was detected earlier this year.

Given the fact that there have been no new FMD outbreaks since mid-September, Britain will be divided into three zones according to risk. The area immediately surrounding the holdings where the outbreaks occurred will remain a high risk zone. A moderate risk buffer zone will surround the high risk zone and the rest of Great Britain will be considered a low risk zone.

However, as a precautionary measure, the export of live animals, semen and embryos from any part of Great Britain will still be banned.