Public need not panic:

Imported vaccines to check spread of Foot and Mouth disease

by Carol Aloysius

The Department of Animal Production has ordered stocks of vaccine from abroad to contain the Foot and Mouth disease now spreading in certain districts of the country.

The affected districts include Jaffna, Mullaitivu and Vavuniya.

“We generally use only locally manufactured vaccines produced in our laboratories in keeping with the particular strains of animals. However, as we now have an emergency situation, and are currently carrying out vaccinations islandwide in all livestock farms, the locally manufactured vaccines developed for our strain of livestock may not be adequate and imported vaccines have been ordered with immediate effect”, Director General, Department of Animal Production and Health, Peradeniya, Dr W.K.D. De Silva told the Sunday Observer.

He said that steps have been taken to check all livestock in every farm and diseased animals will be culled to check the spread of the disease. The new vaccines will be imported from India or Bangladesh.

De Silva said that the Foot and Mouth disease was not new to Sri Lanka.”

It is endemic and comes every four to five years. The disease has become more virulent this year as livestock owners had failed to vaccinate their cattle including pigs and goats. They need to do this every year to prevent the outbreak of the disease.”

He had imposed a ban on the transport of meat from high rock areas as meat from infected animals could be transported to other areas.

“We feel that a lot of beef which has not been checked is being transported to Puttalam and the South due to the heavy demand for meat in those districts.

"The transport of meat has been banned in the affected areas with immediate effect to safeguard public health."

Livestock owners may face significant economic losses if their animals are destroyed, but we have to be fair by the public. The public need not panic as the disease does not cause any adverse health impact on humans”, he said.

Epidemiology sources said that the Foot and Mouth disease was caused by a virus and cautioned the public not to confuse it with other similar diseases. “ It is not transmitted to humans”, they said.