Authorities confirmed the first foot-and-mouth disease (FMD) case in nine months at a cattle farm in Incheon on Saturday. The outbreak in Ganghwa County led to raising the alert level from "attention" to "serious" in Incheon and the nearby city of Gimpo. Experts have been dispatched to contain the spread of the disease.
A foot-and-mouth disease (FMD) case was confirmed at a cattle farm in Incheon's Ganghwa County on Saturday, marking the first outbreak in the country in nine months since April. The government's central FMD response headquarters raised the alert level from "attention" to "serious" in Incheon and the adjacent city of Gimpo in response.
Quarantine and epidemiological experts have been dispatched to the affected farm to prevent the disease from spreading. The 246 cows on the ranch will be culled according to established procedures. FMD is an acute infectious viral disease that affects cloven-hoofed animals such as cows, pigs, and goats, but it does not impact humans.
The government issued a 48-hour standstill order for workers and vehicles accessing farms and other livestock facilities in Incheon and Gyeonggi Province. Nearly 40 pieces of disinfection equipment will be deployed to sanitize farms and nearby roads in Incheon and Gimpo.
The previous FMD incident occurred in Yeongam County, South Jeolla Province, on March 16, 2025. This development has heightened concerns among livestock farmers, with authorities stressing rigorous prevention measures to avoid further cases.