File photo shows soldiers burning barns following a a foot-and-mouth scare close to Seoul
SEOUL — South Korea on Sunday began culling almost 30,000 farm animals in a bid to contain the highly contagious foot-and-mouth disease following its outbreak two days ago, officials said.
The disease hit a cattle farm in Ganghwa, some 40 kilometres (25 miles) west of Seoul, last Friday and has since infected four more farms nearby, they said.
Ganghwa county spokesman Bae Hung-Kyu said animals on 227 farms within three kilometres of contaminated farms would be killed.
The planned cull was much bigger than the agriculture ministry's Saturday announcement that about 16,000 livestock at 140 farms would be slaughtered.
Bae said the rapid spread of the disease meant the cull had to be larger than originally planned.
Foot-and-mouth disease affects animals such as cattle, pigs, deer, goats and sheep. The virus can be spread between animals, through the air and on clothing. However, it is rarely transmitted to humans.
South Korea ordered a halt to pork and beef exports in January this year when an outbreak of the disease was confirmed in Pocheon, northeast of Seoul.
Outbreaks in 2000 and 2002 cost South Korea an estimated 450 billion won (400 million dollars).
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