(Bloomberg) — German meat exports are under threat following the first case of foot-and-mouth disease there in almost four decades, in another potential blow to the country’s producers.
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The disease can affect animals including cattle, sheep and pigs and was found in water buffalo near Berlin, in the first case since 1988. The outbreak has prompted the UK to suspend imports of beef, pork and some milk products from the country. South Korea and Mexico have also banned imports of pork, the German government said.
“The flow of meat and goods across Europe has been turned upside down overnight,” Per Fischer Larsen, senior vice president for industry sales at European pork producer Danish Crown, said in a statement, referring to the halt in purchases by Britain, a top non-EU pork buyer. The company, the continent’s biggest pork producer, owns three slaughterhouses in Germany.
The outbreak — especially if it spreads — is the latest setback for the nation’s livestock sector, which has seen production shrink due to challenges including higher energy costs and the outbreak of African swine fever among pigs that curbed trade. That forced some factories to close, while herd sizes have also dwindled amid reduced consumption in domestic markets. Germany is one of the European Union’s largest pork exporters.
A ban on the local movement of animals has been extended to Wednesday to prevent the spread of the infection, and “the top priority now is to contain the further spread of the virus,” German Agriculture Ministry spokesperson Michael Hauck said at a press briefing.
Foot-and-mouth is a highly contagious disease that affects livestock. It is characterized by fever and blister-like sores on the tongue and lips, in the mouth, on the teats and between the hooves.
Trade groups echoed the government’s concern about the outbreak.
“Every effort must be made to contain this outbreak,” German Farmers’ Association President Joachim Rukwied said in a statement on Monday. “The economic damage to livestock farmers is significant because export markets will be lost.”
–With assistance from Kamil Kowalcze.
(Updates with UK suspension in second paragraph, comments from Danish Crown, adds chart)
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