Cypriot President Tassos Papadopoulos assured on Tuesday that the Government would stand by the affected stockbreeders and the sector in general, and expressed deep sorrow over the outbreak of foot and mouth disease (FMD) on the island.
Speaking after a meeting at the Presidential Palace with the participation of Minister of Agriculture, Natural Resources and Environment Photis Photiou, Minister of Finance Michalis Sarris and Director of the Veterinary Services Charalambos Kakoyiannis to discuss developments in the issue of the FMD outbreak, President Papadopoulos said the last time this happened was in 1964.
He added that so far Cyprus was rid of this disease, noting that ”it is with deep sorrow that we see animals being killed, stockbreeders collapsing from the great tragedy of having to put down their animals.”
”However, this is a sacrifice that must be made if the broader dangers for the stockbreeding industry of the island are to be tackled,” the President pointed out.
President Papadopoulos said the Government had EU-approved contingency plans and emergency actions, adding that ”we are fully aware of the extent of the situation today and the dimensions this problem could take, threatening the whole of Cyprus’ stockbreeding if effective measures are not taken in time.”
He noted that the state services were in contact with the EU on a scientific and practical level, and that all measures were being taken.
The President assured the affected stockbreeders that they would be compensated immediately and supported in order to become reactivated in the sector.
Referring to the meeting, President Papadopoulos said all prospects and worst-case scenarios were examined. ”We discussed the measures we can take with the EU to lift certain restrictions that may affect the stockbreeding industry,” he said.
”The Government, all the services and I personally will stand by our stockbreeders. We will not let the stockbreeding of the country be destroyed. We hope we are in a position to tackle even wider adverse effects that the spreading of the disease may have,” he added.
President Papadopoulos said that on Wednesday the Council of Ministers would examine a comprehensive proposal for measures to be taken, and that the Ministry of Finance was making sure that compensation would be given to those affected without delay.
He also said that Cyprus’ economy was strong enough to pull through this problem but noted that no one could foresee to what extent the disease would spread, adding he was sure that if the problem grew, Cyprus would have EU support.
Meanwhile, the European Commission has described Cyprus as a high risk zone following an outbreak of FMD, adding that appropriate measures are in place to deal with the situation and will remain in place until December 15. The ban includes the export of livestock, meat and meat products.
The Commission also said that the local Cypriot cheese, halloumi, does not come under the restrictions imposed on Cyprus because of the outbreak, and can be exported.
Commenting on the measures, President Papadopoulos said there were EU programmes for financial and other support in such cases, and that the measures were to protect local stockbreeding, not only the EU.
