EU eases foot-and-mouth restrictions on Cyprus

The European Union Standing Veterinary Committee decided on Monday to lift the prohibition of dispatching pig-meat from Cyprus from the zones beyond the 10km zone, around the infected holding where foot and mouth disease (FMD) was detected.
A press release issued by the Committee said that under the Decision agreed, pig-meat will be allowed to be dispatched from all of Cyprus apart from a 10km zone around the outbreak area, subject to stringent animal health conditions.
This is because pigs are raised separately and under different conditions to ruminants and are considered to be less susceptible to foot-and-mouth disease. The conditions for dispatch include a 30 day pre-slaughter standstill for pigs used to produce the meat, with no new susceptible livestock introduced to the holding for 21 days prior to slaughter.
According to the press release, at the slaughterhouse, the animals must be killed immediately and ante- and post-mortem inspections will have to be carried out. The meat will then have to be quarantined for 24 hours and can only be dispatched if there was no suspicion of disease in the holding of origin.
For all other animals and meat products, the full protection and control measures still apply i.e. no ruminants or their products can be dispatched and movement restrictions remain in place.
The Cypriot authorities have informed the Commission that they are continuing testing and serological investigations into the source of the FMD outbreak, especially in the 3km and 10km risk zones, the press release noted.