The country recorded 39 outbreaks in 2000. As France stepped up measures to control the outbreak, Belgium, Spain, Norway, Portugal, Poland, Germany and Switzerland slapped a ban on all imports of cloven-hoofed French livestock. The U.S. Department of Agriculture this week implemented additional measures to guard against FMD entering the United States. The ban does not include cooked pork products. Passengers are being required to identify any farm contact to Customs and USDA officials.
All baggage is subject to inspection.
FMD is a highly contagious and economically devastating disease of ruminants and swine. The United States has been FMD-free since 1929. FMS is one of the animal diseases that livestock owners dread most because it spreads widely and rapidly and has grave economic consequences. Humans are not susceptible to the disease. The American Sheep Industry Association this week mailed letters to domestic wool companies, updating them on the spread of the disease and informing them of the slight risk of the virus being harbored in or spread by wool.