South Korea culls cattle and hogs to contain FMD

South Korea on Sunday (April 11) began culling more than 25,000 head of cattle and hogs in an effort to contain an outbreak of foot-and-mouth disease (FMD) affecting a region north-west of the capital Seoul.

About 800 officials and soldiers were enlisted by Gangwha county to cull the animals within a 1.8-mile radius of one farm that announced it had an outbreak last week. Officials said there are increasing numbers of reports on other suspected cases.

FMD spreads due to a highly-contagious virus that affects cattle, hogs, sheep and other cervids. This most recent case comes on the heels of an outbreak in a northern region in January that resulted in halting pork and beef exports, although South Korea is a net importer of meat.

The latest case follows an outbreak in a northern region in January that led to the halt of pork and beef exports, although the country is a net importer of the meat.