Beef exports from Kinmen to Taiwan suspended after cows get LSD

Taipei, Aug. 30 (CNA) Beef exports from Kinmen to the island of Taiwan have been temporarily suspended after several cattle in the outlying county contracted lumpy skin disease (LSD), the Ministry of Agriculture (MOA) said Friday.

According to the Kinmen County Animal and Plant Disease Control Center, seven out of 180 cattle at a farm in Jinsha Township showed signs of LSD, an infectious, sometimes fatal disease.

Testing confirmed the presence of the virus, leading to the swift culling of the infected cows and the administration of vaccine boosters to the remaining cattle on Thursday, the MOA said.

Inspections at farms within a 3-kilometer radius found no further cases, and experts concluded there are no signs of a broader outbreak, the ministry said.

Hsu Jung-pin (徐榮彬), deputy director of the Animal and Plant Health Inspection Agency, noted that this was the first time cows in Kinmen had gotten LSD since 2020.

He explained that the affected farm practices grazing, and some cattle may have missed vaccinations, resulting in reduced immunity.

Given Kinmen's proximity to China, the disease may have spread from China via windborne vectors, he said.

To protect the industry, Hsu said that the ministry has suspended beef and cattle exports from Kinmen to Taiwan and other islands, and has notified the World Organisation for Animal Health (WOAH).

Veterinary teams will assist in administering additional vaccinations at high-risk farms to prevent further spread.

The ministry emphasized that while LSD is a WOAH-listed disease and classified as a "Category A" animal infectious disease in Taiwan, it is not zoonotic and poses no risk to humans. Authorities will continue rigorous inspections to ensure the safety of the public's meat supply, it added.