Greece – March 2026
FMD (foot-and-mouth disease) was confirmed in a cattle farm in Lesvos, Greece on 17 March.
This is the country's first outbreak in 25 years. The serotype is yet to be confirmed.
More information is available at: GOV.UK | Foot and Mouth disease detected in Greece
Cyprus – February 2026
Three cases of FMD were detected in cattle and sheep near Larnaca, Cyprus. The source of the disease incursion has not yet been determined.
Serotype SAT 1 has been confirmed. SAT 1 is exotic to Western Asia and the Caucasus region. It has potential to spread quickly since livestock are immunologically naïve and highly susceptible to infection with this serotype.
The last FMD outbreaks reported from the Republic of Cyprus was serotype O in 2007.
FMD and trade:
Slovakia – March 2025
Six separate cases of FMD were reported by the Slovak Government.
Five of the affected farms were in the south of the country, close to the border with Hungary, with the first reported on 20 March. A further case was reported on 30 March on a farm located 70km from the earlier affected farms. The serotype matches with the cases in Hungary.
Cases of FMD have not been reported in Slovakia since 1973.
Control measures were implemented by Slovakian authorities, including protection zones and surveillance zones and the movement of animals is prohibited. Affected animals will be vaccinated and culled.
Hungary – March 2025
The Slovakian cases followed confirmation of FMD in Germany on 10 January and in Hungary on 7 March – Germany’s first outbreak in almost 40 years, and the first in Hungary in more than 50 years.
A second farm in Hungary reported infection with FMD on 26 March.
Serotype O was subsequently confirmed. Its sequence shows the highest similarity with a strain isolated in Pakistan in 2017-18 (98- 99%). This strain differed from the one found in Germany in January 2025, meaning the outbreaks were not linked.
Germany – January 2025
FMD virus serotype O was confirmed in a herd of water buffalo near Brandenberg, in the Markisch Odèland district of Germany (to the east of Berlin). This is the first instance of FMD in Germany since 1988.
The cases were confirmed on 10 January 2025 and affected three water buffalo out of a herd of 14. The remaining animals in the herd were culled to prevent further spread.
200 pigs on a nearby farm were also culled as a precaution.
No further cases of FMD have been found in Germany. The State of Brandeburg and Berlin initially imposed a standstill for cloven-hoofed animals. This standstill lasted until 17 January 2025 in Brandenburg and 27 January in Berlin.
Veal calves were moved from Brandenburg to the Netherlands before FMD was detected, but no cases have been reported in the Netherlands following testing. The Dutch Government imposed a ban on the movement of calves while investigations and testing were carried out. These restrictions were lifted on 24 January 2025.
Nine farms in Belgium were placed under precautionary quarantine following the movement of animals from Brandenburg to Belgium. However, no cases have been detected.
Vaccines
Suitable vaccines against FMDV (foot-and-mouth disease virus), serotype O are available in the German FMD antigen bank. Once activated by the Länder, the FMD antigen bank can produce the necessary vaccines within a few days.
Surveillance information will determine any further measures that may need to be taken, as well as whether and how to use a vaccine.
Suppressive vaccination is being used on the infected farms in Slovakia and on the second infected farm in Hungary. The vaccine reduces viral load in densely population areas and has been used to reduce the immediate pressure on human, logistic and technical resources.
