THE disease management areas (DMAs) in the Eastern Cape and Limpopo have been lifted after intensive efforts by veterinary services were successful in containing the spread of foot-and-mouth disease (FMD) in the two provinces, the Minister of Agriculture, John Steenhuisen, said on Friday.
In the Kouga and Kou-Kamma municipalities in Eastern Cape, a DMA has been in place since 26 July 2024 to support the control of FMD outbreaks. Vaccination was implemented as a control measure and 144,424 vaccinations were done. The last cases were reported in September 2024. Extensive serological surveillance was done in the DMA to confirm that there are no undetected pockets of the disease. The minister confirmed the lifting of the movement restrictions in the Eastern Cape DMA.
The lifting of the DMA restrictions takes effect on 4 July, as published in the Government Gazette.
Steenhuisen emphasised that biosecurity is everybody’s responsibility. “Biosecurity is not just a farming concern, but a shared responsibility of every individual in South Africa. We call on all citizens, especially those interacting with livestock or moving between rural areas, to consistently adhere to all biosecurity measures. Only through our collective efforts can we safeguard our agricultural sector, make sure livelihoods are protected and ensure we keep our areas FMD-free, he added.
Farms in Eastern Cape will remain under quarantine
The Department of Agriculture said a total of 76 farms in the Eastern Cape, which were infected and/or vaccinated, remain under quarantine. Movement restrictions will remain in place on these farms until testing has confirmed the absence of viral circulation. Testing will commence 12 months after the farms have been vaccinated. The department has decided to allow milk from quarantined farms to be released into the local market following single pasteurisation, instead of double pasteurisation, which was required when the disease was still active in the area.
Maintaining the DMA in KwaZulu-Natal
The DMA in KwaZulu-Natal (KZN) will remain in place since there are still signs of active virus circulation in the area. Some outbreaks were detected outside of the DMA. An abattoir in the Vryheid area in the DMA was designated to slaughter animals from premises under FMD restrictions. A system has been put in place to assess the level of biosecurity on individual farms, with the intention of aligning the control measures to the biosecurity risks, according to the Department of Agriculture.
