Efforts to control the spread of Foot and Mouth Disease (FMD) in KwaZulu-Natal are still being hampered by the illegal movement of livestock.

This was highlighted during the KZN Provincial FMD Indaba held in Durban on Thursday. 

KZN Department of Agriculture and Rural Development MEC Thembeni kaMadlopha-Mthethwa said that clinical signs of the disease are evident in most KZN districts, with the exception of Ugu.

She said KZN has 180 FMD open outbreaks that remain unresolved. 

“As of October 2025, there are 274 unresolved outbreaks across the province,” kaMadlopha-Mthethwa said. 

Since the 2021 outbreak, rigorous vaccination campaigns began in 2022, vaccinating approximately 800,000 cattle.

KaMadlopha-Mthethwa emphasised that addressing the FMD situation requires a collective effort from all stakeholders.

“New outbreaks of FMD continue to emerge in different locations, all caused by the SAT2 FMD virus, which now appears to be present in a large area affecting communal, commercial, feedlot, dairy, and beef animals in KwaZulu-Natal. The same FMD SAT strain was disseminated by illegally moving animals via auctions, to a number of commercial farms and feedlots,” kaMadlopha-Mthethwa said. 

She said the KZN DMA expanded in 2025 due to ongoing disease spread, yet the 2021 KZN SAT2 FMD virus outbreaks persisted within and outside its boundaries.

While communal farm outbreaks are managed by quarantine and vaccination, efforts are underway to boost vaccination coverage as vaccine availability allows. Since mid-2025, increased virus detection on farms and feedlots outside the KZN DMA are linked to illegal animal movement via auctions and speculator sales, non-compliance with the 2022 28-day post-movement isolation, and poor biosecurity.

KaMadlopha-Mthethwa said that although there are stock theft police, they cannot control the movement of livestock at night. However, they will learn from other provinces and how they are stop the illegal movement of livestock. 

Red Meat Producers Organization (RPO) KZN chairman and national RPO vice-chairman Angus Williamson said some farmers have reverted to the illegal movement of livestock. 

“Emerging farmers, if they do not have market access, they have to revert to moving those cattle illegally. That is, unfortunately, why and how foot and mouth has spread, because there has been limited market access,” Williamson said. 

“If you think of somebody who has to sell two cattle to put food on the table, to pay school fees, to be able to survive, and they don’t have market access. They will load those cattle on a trailer, and they will move them to Standerton or wherever, to be able to have market access. If that is the only source of income. So that is why foot and mouth has spread to other provinces.” 

Kwanalu President and Hluhluwe commercial farmer Peter John Hassard said: “We need to go out there, practice the law and make sure that these animals that are not moving, so that we can stop the disease because it is affecting the livelihoods of people,” Hassard said.  

He said there are measures that must be in place, and the movement of animals is one of them. 

“If we could stop the movement of animals, then obviously we’d be able to control the disease. But you have to give people options on where they’re able to sell their animals,” Hassard explained. 

“You can’t just close an area down and say no more selling, no more movement, because you need to be able to sell something to be able to pay school fees, buy food, pay people, pay your accounts, pay for whatever. 

“It is necessary to stop the movement, but we also have to give options to people to be able to make an income.” 

KZN state veterinarian for epidemiology Dr Chanelle Kyle, who currently runs the KZN Movement Permit office, said animal movement control is challenging, relying on country, province, and people’s compliance with permits.

Kyle emphasised that movement control is crucial to prevent the catastrophic effects of foot and mouth disease, not just to avoid fines.

She urged people to take responsibility, avoid moving animals illegally, and follow protocols to collectively overcome the disease.

thobeka.ngema@inl.co.za

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