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Foot-and-mouth disease threatens Austria: there is a current travel warning for Hungary and Slovakia! Strict import bans are being implemented to prevent an outbreak.
Easter is just around the corner—but this time, it means: don’t bring any sausage from abroad! Foot-and-mouth disease is back and, according to experts, is closer to Austria’s doorstep than it has been for 40 years. Particularly affected are Hungary and Slovakia, popular destinations for trips home over the holidays.
“There is a ban on imports from Slovakia and Hungary,” clarified Simone Schmiedtbauer (ÖVP), Member of the Provincial Council for Agriculture. The warning is drastic: anyone bringing in meat, raw milk, manure, or live animals risks the lives of entire herds in an emergency – because in an outbreak, all hoofed animals within a radius of three kilometers must be killed!
Particularly tragic: the disease is insidious – it also affects wild animals and can be carried up to 40 kilometers by the wind. Hopes are now pinned on the hunting community. “We are early detection partners in the hunting grounds,” explained Franz Mayr-Melnhof-Saurau, master hunter and president of Jagd Österreich, published by APA.
Hunters are particularly challenged now. They should raise the alarm immediately if they observe conspicuous behavior in wild animals. If the disease is detected too late, the economic consequences can be devastating. Even suspicion can lead to the total closure of farms, markets, and animal transportation.
Pathologist Anna Kübber-Heiss from the University of Veterinary Medicine Vienna urgently explained, “This epidemic has not been this close for 40 years.” Little is known about how the virus manifests itself in wild animals. Hunting is, therefore, already banned in parts of Burgenland and Lower Austria.
But that’s not all: game meat and hunting trophies are also currently no longer allowed to be brought into Austria from Slovakia or Hungary. Travel hotspots such as bus stations are being monitored, where information material is now being distributed to ensure that no contaminated schnitzel crosses the border.
According to Schmiedtbauer, over 1,000 samples have been taken in Austria so far—with no positive results. Nevertheless, she urges caution. If an outbreak occurs, not only must the animals be killed, but feed and food must also be destroyed.
The federal government bears the costs of this – but not the farmers’ loss of earnings. “However, there is the option of taking out insurance,” says Schmiedtbauer. The only catch: the cover only takes effect after six weeks. Until then, you have to hope and not take any risks.
- source: heute.at/picture: canva.com
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