South Africa starts extensive vaccine campagin against FMD in cattle

South Africa on Wednesday rolled out a 10‑year drive to vaccinate nearly 20 million cattle as a fast‑spreading foot‑and‑mouth outbreak hits herds and squeezes key export markets.

The highly contagious viral infection, also known as FMD, is not dangerous to humans but particularly affects ruminant livestock such as cattle, sheep and goats. It causes fever, blisters in the mouth and near the hoof – and sometimes death.

The outbreak…