Government strengthens quarantine against livestock infectious diseases in winter... Intensive management of large-scale laying hen farms

Introducing a pre-registration system for personnel and vehicles entering the farm… Block SAT1 type foot-and-mouth disease from entering the country

(Seoul = Yonhap News) Reporter Kim Se-rin = The government has decided to intensively manage large laying hen farms and farm complexes to prevent the outbreak of highly pathogenic avian influenza (AI) in winter.

The Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs held an inspection meeting on special quarantine measures for winter livestock infectious diseases on the 15th and made this announcement while inspecting the progress of quarantine efforts by local governments and related organizations.

In particular, through the pre-registration system for personnel and vehicles entering large laying hen farms, newly introduced this year, the three-stage quarantine that connects the existing base disinfection facility, farm control post, and farm will be expanded to four stages.

In addition, local governments were asked to thoroughly check whether livestock farms are complying with basic quarantine rules, and related organizations were asked to monitor wild birds, disinfect high-risk areas, and inspect the first response system in case of suspected cases.

Regarding foot-and-mouth disease quarantine, we decided to strengthen disinfection around farms where outbreaks occurred and ensure that no individuals missed vaccinations, while also focusing on blocking the influx of SAT1 type foot-and-mouth disease, which originated in China and Mongolia, into the country.

The Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs has designated the period from October 1 of this year to February 28 of next year as a special quarantine period and is implementing quarantine measures.

The Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs explained that the incidence of highly pathogenic AI in overseas wild birds has more than doubled this year compared to the previous year, and the population of ducks in the three major migratory bird destinations in Korea, including the Han River Estuary, Sihwa Lake, and Sapgyo Lake, also increased 2.9 times compared to the same period last year, increasing the risk of the virus being introduced into the country.

Song Mi-ryeong, Minister of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs, said, "The government, related agencies, and farms must respond together to prevent the outbreak of livestock infectious diseases in the winter. Livestock farms must also practice basic quarantine rules such as disinfection and hand washing."