More than 2,000 cattle are to be culled on a Hungarian farm after cases of foot-and-mouth disease were identified, according to the news website Euronews.
Authorities have put in place security restrictions around the farm in the village of Levél in northwestern Hungary, the news outlet reported.
The latest cases come after Hungary recorded its first outbreak of the highly contagious virus in 50 years on a separate farm earlier this month.
The virus primarily affects cloven-hoofed livestock such as cattle, sheep, goats and pigs and can spread rapidly among herds of animals.
Foot-and-mouth re-emerged in Europe earlier this year, with a case reported in a buffalo herd in Germany in January. Before that, the last known outbreak on the continent occurred in Bulgaria in 2011. The pathogen is endemic to Africa, Asia and the Middle East.
Germany successfully contained the outbreak, but subsequent disease hot spots in Slovakia and Hungary have sparked concerns in Europe over potential economic repercussions and shortages of meat and milk.
Slovakian Prime Minister Robert Fico warned that the virus posed a serious threat to the country after his government declared a state of emergency on Tuesday, with sick animals being identified in several farms.
Meanwhile, Poland and the Czech Republic banned imports of certain agricultural products from Slovakia to curb the spread of the disease.
Polish authorities have also begun checking and disinfecting vehicles transporting livestock on the Poland-Slovakia border.
The foot-and-mouth virus can spread through direct contact with the infected animal’s saliva, mucus, milk or feces. There is also a risk of airborne transmission and contact with contaminated surfaces, but the disease is not considered a threat to human health.
