Ban on meat transport lifted in most districts

by Carol Aloysius

The Health Ministry has lifted the temporary ban on the transport of meat from districts affected by the Foot and Mouth disease.

An estimated 12,500 head of livestock are said to have been infected by the disease, which health sources said had no adverse impact on humans.

“Since no new reports of fresh cases of infected cattle, or any other farm animal, had been reported we decided to lift the ban with immediate effect in most areas where it was imposed”, Director General, Department of Animal Production and Health Dr W.K. de Silva told the Sunday Observer.

He said the decision to lift the temporary ban imposed last month was made by a special committee appointed to review the progress of the disease, examine the epidemiological risks involved, check if the disease was subsiding and also explore the possibility of its spread.

The Advisory Committee was also present at the discussion to submit its findings to look into the appeals by farm owners who may not have vaccinated their livestock for various reasons.

“This committee will study their appeals and decide on each case individually”, Dr Silva said.

The districts where the ban had been lifted include Ampara with the exception of Kalmunai, Jaffna where an unofficial ban is in force, Puttalam except for one or two areas, the Gampaha district excluding Welisara and Jaela and Trincomalee except for two areas. “We will not lift the ban in Anuradhapura, Mullaitivu and Vavuniya as the disease still prevails in these districts”, he said.

“Drinking milk is not a health hazard. We have told the public that they can continue to collect fresh milk from any district where it is produced”, he said.