Yangju City Launches Mass Vaccination to Prevent Foot-and-Mouth Disease

Yangju City in Gyeonggi Province announced on August 25 that it will conduct a mass vaccination campaign against foot-and-mouth disease for 19,829 cattle and goats across 356 livestock farms in the city by September 30.

Exterior view of Yangju City Hall. Provided by Yangju City

This vaccination campaign aims to prevent missed vaccinations for livestock vulnerable to foot-and-mouth disease, improve the collective antibody formation rate through simultaneous inoculation, and preemptively block the introduction of the foot-and-mouth disease virus into farms.

The foot-and-mouth disease vaccine will be provided free of charge to small-scale farms raising fewer than 50 cattle or fewer than 1,000 pigs, as well as to goat farms. For larger-scale commercial farms, 70% of the vaccine purchase cost will be subsidized.

In particular, to prevent any animals from being missed during vaccination, veterinarians commissioned by the city will vaccinate all cattle, while the Yangju Livestock Cooperative Association and capture teams will vaccinate all goats. Pigs should be vaccinated by the farms themselves according to the existing foot-and-mouth disease vaccination schedule.

After the mass vaccination, related agencies such as the Animal Health Laboratory will conduct foot-and-mouth disease serological tests to verify compliance. If the antibody positive rate falls below the standard (80% for cattle, 60% for goats, 60% for breeding pigs, and 30% for fattening pigs), a fine of up to 10 million won may be imposed.

A city official stated, "Since foot-and-mouth disease occurred in Jeonnam earlier this year, livestock farmers must remain vigilant and thoroughly participate in the vaccination process," and urged, "We ask for the active cooperation of livestock farmers to ensure that no animals are missed during vaccination."