Agriculture officials in China announced Saturday that they have identified outbreaks of foot-and-mouth disease affecting cattle herds in two northwestern areas of the country.
The Chinese Ministry of Agriculture confirmed that 219 cattle tested positive for the SAT1 strain of foot-and-mouth disease. The infected animals were part of two separate herds containing a combined total of 6,229 cattle located in Gansu province and the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region.
Following the discovery of the disease, regional authorities in both affected areas have begun implementing emergency response protocols, including the culling of infected animals and comprehensive disinfection procedures at the affected facilities.
According to industry experts, this outbreak represents the first documented case of the SAT1 strain reaching China’s borders. The experts noted that vaccines currently available within the country do not provide effective protection against this particular variant of the disease.
