sv flag go to the original language article
This article has been translated by Artificial Intelligence (AI). The news agency is not responsible for the content of the translated article. The original was published by TT.

Foot-and-mouth disease in the EU: “A wake-up call”

by AI | 17.Mar 2025 | Europe in brief AI

Foot-and-mouth disease has broken out in Hungary and previously also in Germany. “Very remarkable and a wake-up call for the entire EU,” according to Sweden’s state epizootologist.

EU flags. Photo: Arne Immanuel Bansch/dpa

Stockholm – The feared foot-and-mouth disease has broken out in a herd of dairy cows in Hungary.

In January, foot-and-mouth disease was also detected in a small herd of water buffaloes in Germany, according to the Swedish authority the National Veterinary Institute.

The fact that there have been two outbreaks within the EU in such a short time is “very remarkable,” says Sweden’s state epizootiologist Karl Ståhl.

“The outbreak in Germany was very unexpected, was a wake-up call for the entire EU, and reminded us that foot-and-mouth disease can appear unexpectedly even in Sweden,” he writes in a comment on the National Veterinary Institute’s website.

The virus detected in Hungary is not related to the one detected in Germany and there is no common source of infection.

For animal owners, it is important to be vigilant now, according to Karl Ståhl, because early detection is important to limit the spread.

The risk of spread to Sweden is assessed as very low.

(March 17)