What forced the introduction of strict measures against animal plague and will the authorities be able to limit the infection?
Unfortunately it happened. Despite the warnings because of the outbreaks in Romania and Greece. The plague of ruminants also appeared in our country. The owners of five interconnected livestock farms near Velingrad refused to kill their animals. To the horror of the others. Because the plague is no joke, BNT warns.
"It concerns a very dangerous virus that is in the so-called "A" of the International Bureau of Episodes. These are viruses and infections that are very dangerous when they spread," said Prof. Raiko Peshev, BABH.
There was no plague in Bulgaria for six years. The last recorded explosion was in the summer of 2018 in the area of Bolyarovo, Yambol region. Then the veterinarians reacted very quickly and in just a month the outbreak was eliminated.
"Then we dealt with the virus very quickly and then quarantine measures were lifted very quickly on the country. Because once there is an outbreak, we have to prove that we have eradicated this disease and only then can we trade and export animals abroad. Otherwise, the restrictions are very large when Bulgaria cannot prove that it is free from this disease," added Prof. Raiko Peshev.
When the Food Agency reported an outbreak of plague in small ruminants two weeks ago, they were convinced that farmers had been covering up the disease for weeks.
The animals had previously been treated for the complications that a severe viral infection can cause.
They sought help from the Food Agency vets only after treating the animals failed.
That is why the experts assumed that the infection came from illegal importation of animals from Greece or Romania, where there have been outbreaks since the summer. The owners denied.
They contested the results, marched in front of the farms and prevented the vets from entering and implementing all the draconian measures to prevent the spread of the dangerous disease.
"They thought there was a plague in our farms. They took samples from 25 animals and from there they got 90 positive samples. I don't trust these samples. I need a neutral laboratory to come and assist us. Our animals are completely clinically healthy," said Dimitar Iliev, a breeder from Velingrad.
"There are shepherds here who know very well how long I have been dealing with these sheep, if these animals are sick, they will not give birth right now. And all those in red have given birth," commented Georgi Iliev, a livestock breeder from Velingrad.
Unprecedented, repeated sampling followed, but they also turned out to be positive.
"We are 100% convinced that the animals are sick. We stand behind the actions of the experts and our proposal is to proceed with the destruction of the animals with a commitment to compensate the farmers", said Georgi Tahov, Minister of Agriculture and Food.
The promised compensation is BGN 900,000. However, the farmers refused to kill the animals and sent their samples to a Greek laboratory. They soon announced that they were negative.
The ministry immediately countered that it was a private laboratory that was not authorized to diagnose plague.
But even some of the negative results showed the presence of antibodies, which strengthens the suspicion that the infection is old and the animals have become ill.
Livestock breeders from branch associations in our country demanded urgent measures against the plague at a meeting with the Minister of Agriculture, Georgi Takhov.
"Livestock breeders are worried about the disease spreading and the European Commission imposing a ban on us. We think that the state was tolerant enough in waiting for the liquidation of this outbreak. It also offered super adequate assistance as compensation to farmers. With this money, the farmers can buy animals from quite elite breeds", said Dimitar Zorov, a representative of the livestock industry.
Such acute infections can affect herds across the country and cause a lot of damage.
In addition to high mortality, we are threatened by the sanctions of Europe, which will limit trade. But protests in front of farms near Velingrad prevented the vets from entering.
There were clashes and injuries. Many are questioning why there is so much resistance from ranchers, given that the compensation money will be enough to rebuild their herds and whether the fear of penalties for illegal imports is stronger.
"The flags came and some 300-400 people who didn't belong there at all. Absolute outrages are taking place there. Our colleagues were beaten there, they were not allowed to do their official duties. This is not normal. Some of these protesters I have seen. These are some unfortunate political stunts. Animal diseases are not a place to win votes, believe me. If the disease spreads, these people will evaporate like smoke and no one will be able to see them again. But now they are great heroes and the saddest thing for me is that they are waving the Bulgarian flag", said Prof. Hristo Daskalov, National Center for Food Safety, BABH.
Besides political interference, another reason why farmers resist the destruction of diseased herds is the changed picture of the disease. Plague mortality is not so high anymore, and it is somewhat misleading that the animals are not sick.
"This disease has evolved over the years, and currently the plague does not necessarily have a 100% mortality rate. In Romania, for example, where more than 350,000 sheep were killed, the mortality rate there is below 2%. So mortality is not the main criterion by which the disease can be proven", commented Svetlozar Patarinski, director of the BABH.
It is not clear what the sheep mortality rate was in Velingradsko. Vets were notified late. Whether the strain is weakened or not, its extremely high infectivity remains, easily covering large areas. And plague vaccination is not allowed in the EU. And kilometer-long isolation zones are by no means random.
An example of the rapid spread of the plague is Romania and Greece, which have been fighting the disease since the summer. Romania has extinguished 67 outbreaks of sheep plague this year. 350,000 animals were destroyed because of the disease. There, too, there was resistance to the euthanasia of sheep, but eventually Romania overcame the disease and has now resumed exports to traditional Arab markets. But we do not use the Romanian example. Even belated measures are condemned.
The shots are after the introduction of the sanitary areas. And on them it is clearly visible that the protesters are centimeters away from the fence. And the plague is easily transmitted by sticking to shoes and clothes, with water and feed. Supporters can easily transfer the virus to their own farms.
How to fight the plague in Bulgaria? For now, the denouement is on hold. The European Commission, which recognizes the results of our National Reference Laboratory, is adamant that we must destroy the infected herd.
However, the Minister of Agriculture, Georgi Tahov, stated that the herd will not be killed and remains under quarantine. A complete ban on the movement of animals from and to the Pazardzhik region was also introduced. The big question remains with the control of the introduced measures.
In the next week, the results of the samples that we sent to the highest instance - the European laboratory in Montpellier, France are expected.
From there it will become clear exactly where the infection came from.