A lack of vaccines, new strains of disease and the unopposed spread of foot-and-mouth disease (FMD) has Eastern Cape farmers on their knees, praying they do not see a second outbreak of the financially devastating disease. Just as some Eastern Cape farmers breathed a sigh of relief after their foot-and-mouth disease (FMD) quarantine was lifted last year, the threat of the disease spreading across the country has them hunkering down and praying they will be spared a second outbreak. With new cases being reported almost daily across the country, veterinarians in the field say controlling the spread of the disease is becoming increasingly challenging as domesticated animals, as well as wildlife, are contributing to the ongoing crisis.
And while FMD holds no threat to human wellbeing, it is spreading across various animal species at an alarming rate, raising questions about whether the disease, which is typically only spread through contact, has now become airborne. While the regions along SA’s northern borders have always been more susceptible to FMD, the Eastern Cape recorded localised outbreaks two years ago, with confirmed cases in the Kouga Municipality and the northeastern parts of the province. In recent months, more and more cases have been confirmed across the province and country, with the Northern Cape currently the only province not to report any positive cases of FMD.
Several dairy farms in Kouga were placed under quarantine for 12 months, some of them after voluntarily vaccinating their livestock in September 2024 as a preventive measure to stop the spread of the disease. While a 12-month quarantine was a heavy price to pay, forcing farmers to implement additional biosecurity measures and add more processes to render their milk production safe, their forward thinking paid off. Their latest FMD test results came back negative and their quarantine was lifted towards the end of 2025.
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“But we are clearly not out of the woods yet. We are hearing some horror stories coming from KZN, about cows losing their hooves and being culled in droves. We cannot allow FMD to come back here,” said Kouga farm manager Karel Schoeman.
According to Schoeman their operations near Humansdorp were among the first to detect FMD in their herds in 2024. They were able to secure enough vaccinations before shortages were reported, and treated their affected animals quickly.
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