The Veterinary Services of the Republic of Cyprus are on red alert due to the detection of a case of foot-and-mouth disease in the Turkish occupied territories of the Republic, Director of the Veterinary Services, Christodoulos Pipis, said Tuesday replying to journalists’ questions during a visit to supermarkets in Famagusta ahead of the Christmas holidays.
Pipis was accompanying Minister of Agriculture, Rural Development and the Environment, Maria Panayiotou, who was also asked on the matter and said “we are on alert.”
Asked about reports that Cypriot exports are being hit by foot-and-mouth disease and which products are banned, the Minister of Agriculture said that “the Australian authorities have informed us that they have effectively banned imports of products from Cyprus as a result of the foot-and-mouth disease outbreak in the occupied territories.”
She noted that from the first day they were informed by the Australian authorities, they have taken a series of actions, clarifying that ‘our actions certainly did not arise from the information from Australia. Since the issue broke out and we had information, the Veterinary Services have taken 16 very specific steps so far.’ Among these, she said, is the intensification of controls everywhere.
“The Veterinary Services are on alert and we have contacted all the services that need to be informed and intensify controls.’
Asked about the shipments that are on their way, Panayiotou said that ‘we will see in the coming days how the issue will develop. What interests us is that the controls continue intensively in order to manage the situation. There are 16 steps that have been taken to date. The information that is provided is daily.’
She noted that yesterday the Veterinary Services, under her instructions, had a three-hour meeting with all those involved to be informed about the further security measures that the livestock units must also take. “We are monitoring the issue,’ she concluded.
Meanwhile, Director of the Veterinary Services, Christodoulos Pipis, said that they have taken steps from the very beginning and are in communication with the European Commission, as well as with the competent Australian authorities, who have informed them that they will review the information Cyprus had submitted to them and, based that they will possibly reconsider their decision, possibly amending the list of products that have been excluded for the time being.
Regarding the fate of the shipments, which are on their way to Australia, he said that the Veterinary Services will investigate the possibility that they will at least accept them so that they do not have to be rejected or returned.
Asked about the visit of a European Commission delegation saying that “from the very beginning we had requested the arrival of this specific group of experts, who went to the occupied areas two days ago and have reviewed the case and the situation.”
The situation, he stressed, is crucial, and for this reason the Veterinary Services are on red alert.
“We are ready to take action wherever required, taking all measures that can be taken with the aim of excluding the spread of the virus in the government controlled areas of the Republic,” Pipis said.
He explained that the foot-and-mouth disease is airborne, it is very difficult to 100% exclude it, stressed that they are in full cooperation with everyone involved to proceed with whatever is required to be done to exclude the possibility of having the disease in the government controlled areas.
Invited to comment on reports in the occupied territories that blame the Republic of Cyprus of having transferred foot-and-mouth disease from the government controlled areas through illegal trade, Pipis said that this accusation is unfounded. In addition, he pointed out that “it has also been raised to the experts of the European Union, who said that even if you wanted to hide the cases that you might have in the areas controlled by the Republic, the disease is of such epidemiology and such seriousness that you could not hide it, let alone hide it for 1-2 days beyond that, the disease itself would betray you”.
Pipis said that “from the facts alone you understand that these allegations are groundless”.