russia Is Concealing a New Outbreak of Foot-and-Mouth Disease

Authorities in the kuzbass have secretly culled about 4,000 dairy cows at the “vaganovo” JSC dairy complex. The official explanation: nodular dermatitis, a condition that is treatable with antibiotics and does not typically require mass culling. But farmers think otherwise.

Mass culling also took place in the village of okunevo and at several private farms. In parallel, farmers were banned from transporting and selling animals outside the district – without any official quarantine. The milk from them had stopped being collected. Instead, farmers were told to urgently vaccinate their herds with an unidentified medication without any documentation. No explanations were given– just a demand to sign and comply.

Local residents are certain: this is foot-and-mouth disease, which the authorities are concealing. Everything is unfolding according to the same pattern as in the neighboring novosibirsk region earlier this year. There, they initially spoke of pasteurellosis, seized and slaughtered the livestock, and then the regional veterinary center finally admitted: foot-and-mouth disease had been found in the cows.

The governor of the kuzbass ilya sredyuk appeared at the meeting with the farmers. According to the participants, after the conversation, they were made to sign a non-disclosure agreement. The condition is clear: if someone speaks out, they all will go to the “special military operation”.

The motive behind the concealing is obvious. An official confirmation of foot-and-mouth disease would automatically jeopardize all russian livestock exports. That is precisely why the authorities prefer to sacrifice farmers rather than the rf’s reputation in foreign markets. This is not the first time russia has covered up an outbreak of a dangerous disease, risking the health not only of its own population but also of neighboring countries.