More than a million pigs and cattle were slaughtered in South Korea in connection with the foot-and-mouth disease epidemic, Seoul’s agriculture ministry said on Friday. The prices of beef and pork have risen sharply. The country is also fighting bird flu.
So far in South Korea, where the highest risk of foot-and-mouth disease was introduced this week, 95 cases of the disease have been confirmed in six provinces. About 8 percent of pigs and cattle were slaughtered nationwide.
To contain the rapidly spreading disease, the first cases of which were recorded in late November, more than 1,2 million animals, mainly cattle, have been vaccinated.
Three cases of H5N1 avian influenza in poultry have also been confirmed.
The foot-and-mouth disease epidemic closed all bazaars where animals were sold, and increased the wholesale prices of beef and pork. The disease is likely to lead to increased imports from the United States, Australia and New Zealand.
Some zoos have also been closed, local media reported.
Retail prices for beef and pork rose by 10 and 11 percent respectively from Wednesday to Thursday. Beef prices will be even higher in early February, during the Lunar New Year celebrations, the agriculture ministry said in a press release.
The current foot-and-mouth disease epidemic began in late November in the city of Andong in the southeast of South Korea. The disease is not dangerous to humans. (PAP)