FMD: Managing the response amidst media chaos during a recent resurgence

Foot and mouth disease (FMD) is a highly contagious viral animal disease whose impacts have long been studied by researchers across disciplines. By sending shockwaves across food systems and economies, the disease has established itself as one of the most feared livestock diseases worldwide, especially in trade-oriented countries. Its renewed presence in the EU has stirred concerns among stakeholders whose countries have remained disease-free for decades. 

Trade, food security and economy under threat 

FMD is feared worldwide for its devastating impact on trade, food security and the economy. With clinical signs varying with the strain of virus, age and breed of animal, the disease typically causes painful blisters which translate into severe production losses. This means that, far from being only a veterinarian crisis, FMD has profound, far-reaching consequences. By reducing milk and meat production, the disease poses indeed a unique threat to the farming sector, exacerbating poverty and worsening food insecurity in affected communities. 

When FMD broke out in the early 2000s in the UK, the event resulted in over 6 million animals (pigs, sheep and cattle) being culled and a public expenditure of £3 billion. Figures like these are a clear indication of the disease’s potential to cause society-wide disruption – shuttering borders, halting movement and putting the economy under strain. 

The recent FMD outbreaks in Hungary and Slovakia – a total of eleven – have also prompted swift responses from border inspection authorities. In April,  several countries announced a temporary ban restricting the use and transport of dairy and meat products from the EU, citing concerns that cross-border travel could facilitate transmission through contaminated food, transport vehicles and packaging. 

Testing the EU’s resilience 

FMD is commonly reported in parts of Africa, Asia and the Middle East, but has been eliminated from most high-income countries. The EU had been free of FMD since 2011, when the last outbreak occurred in Bulgaria.

However, 2025 started on a challenging note for Europe. After decades without cases, Germany reported an outbreak in a buffalo farm in January 2025. The outbreak was successfully contained, and the country was quick to regain WOAH’s status “free of FMD without vaccination” on 14 April 2025.

Meanwhile in Hungary, the first case in over half a century was reported on a cattle farm near the border with Austria and Slovakia, in an area with moderate cattle density. “We were shocked when we realised what was going on”, says Dr Bognár Lajos Levente, WOAH’s Delegate of Hungary. “It was such a surprise for us to see the disease reaching the EU. I don’t think any country is really prepared for this kind of outbreak, especially considering that the region has long been free from the disease”.

Three outbreaks were soon after reported in adjacent Slovakia, where a state of emergency was declared and border restrictions were imposed. Dr Martin Chudy, WOAH’s Delegate of Slovakia, recalls the night when the first signs of the disease were detected, with two cows showing suspiciously high temperature. “When it comes to responding to an outbreak, you always need to be one step ahead of the virus,” he says, also adding that the complexity of FMD makes this approach even more urgent. 

No new outbreaks have been reported in Hungary and Slovakia since 17 April. The latest data submitted by national Veterinary Authorities can be found at World Animal Health Information System (WAHIS) portal managed by the World Organisation for Animal Health (WOAH). 

Responding to the resurgence 

As with other diseases, surveillance, data collection and timely reporting are key to containing and preventing the spread. FMD presents a unique challenge because it is extremely infectious: once the infection takes hold in a population, it becomes exponentially more difficult to contain, making rapid response measures especially critical. It also affects recreational activities at risk such as visiting zoological parks or hunting. 

When it occurs, FMD often necessitates mass culling of affected animals and implementation of stringent biosecurity measures to contain it. Biosecurity measures against FMD spread include cleaning and disinfection of affected premises (after depopulation), movement restrictions of animal, people, vehicles and farm equipment, and intensive surveillance in buffer zones around the outbreaks – all of which were implemented in Hungary and Slovakia since the onset of the outbreak. Emergency vaccination can also be used in some circumstances. However, countries may be reluctant because of concerns about the impact of FMD vaccination on regaining disease freedom and on international trade. 

The use of Incident Management System approaches has allowed agility and effectiveness in the EU-wide response to the disease. WOAH recently developed its own IMS, thanks to the generous support of Global Affairs Canada’s Weapons Threat Reduction Program in support of the objectives of the G7-led Global Partnership Against the Spread of Weapons and Materials of Mass Destruction (GP). The IMS was activated for the first time to support WOAH’s response to the emergency facing the three EU countries, and with potential implications beyond.

The IMS offered a powerful platform for continuous risk assessment, supporting the sharing of experiences among countries and partner organisations, as well as the sharing of information with the public. We were on alert to escalate the response if the situation deteriorated, and Veterinary Services would have required support to be coordinated within international emergency preparedness frameworks.

Alexandre Fediaevsky, Preparedness and Resilience Department at WOAH.

“Among the benefits of activating an IMS were faster decision processes as well as increased internal, external coordination capacity and information sharing.”, adds Alexandre Fediaevsky.

Fighting misinformation during emergencies

The COVID-19 pandemic offers a unique example of how information systems can be heavily strained at times of uncertainty. While on a much smaller scale, the recent FMD outbreaks in the EU have brought back to the fore the danger that misinformation can pose in society, influencing public perceptions and amplifying fears. 

Misleading media reports and headlines during the outbreaks contributed to public concern over human infection despite scientific consensus that FMD poses minimal risk to people. This also happened in countries not directly affected by the disease where precautionary measures were taken. According to The Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra), some media inaccurately reported that it took six or seven days for controls on commercial imports to take effect and allowed disease to enter the country.  

In addition to this, there has been no shortage of speculation around the very origins of the outbreak. Despite WOAH stating that there’s no evidence suggesting that the recent FMD outbreaks may have been deliberate, some unverified claims have raised alarm over this possibility, fuelling fears of deliberate introduction. Soon after news started circulating, virologist Jiří Černý from the Czech University of Life Sciences in Prague publicly warned against jumping to conclusions. Meanwhile, some media outlets reacted to the news debunking untruthful narratives and providing context to the events.  

A recent World Economic Forum report has highlighted that mis- and disinformation are perceived as the greatest short-term risks facing the world, underscoring the urgency of addressing the issue. The effort needed to keep on top of mis- and disinformation also draw resources away from the actual response. To help Veterinary Services, Aquatic Animal Health Services and Law Enforcement navigate the shifting information landscape, WOAH has developed a set of guidelines on the topic in partnership with the International Criminal Police Organisation (INTERPOL), with the support of Global Affairs Canada’s Weapons Threat Reduction Program. The Countering disinformation and misinformation in animal health emergencies guidelines introduce some key strategies to manage disinformation and misinformation.  

Armed with renewed interest and deeper understanding of the issue, WOAH hopes that these guidelines will help online audiences mitigate the risk of fragmentation, ensuring that the disease monitoring and control remain timely and effective. “The elimination of a disease does not mean that it will never be back,” says WOAH’s Director General Emmanuelle Soubeyran. “This is why it’s crucial that we do everything possible to ensure the countries worldwide have at their disposal the necessary tools – from incident management systems to early detection and control measures – to address the unpredictable emergence of both old and new threats.”

^{Disclaimer 
Deliberate introduction of animal pathogens is a real risk, but in this case, there was no concrete evidence to support this hypothesis. In fact, WOAH has a programme on biological threat reduction which aims to mitigate the risk of deliberate or accidental release of animal pathogens. This includes providing support to Members on investigating suspicious events and countering misinformation.  WOAH is not aware of any evidence that the FMD event was caused by a deliberate introduction, nor that the virus is of non-natural origin. Epidemiological investigations are still ongoing on the transmission pattern. All plausible hypotheses to determine the origin of the outbreaks are being considered and assessed, building on the available data and evolving evidence.}