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    <titulek>
        Foot and mouth disease: latest situation
    </titulek>
    <datum>
        24.2.2026
    </datum>
    <autor>
          | Her Majesty's Revenue and Customs
    </autor>
    <perex>
         Current cases of foot and mouth disease, trade restrictions and risk level. 
    </perex>
    <text>
        
Contents:


Current cases in Europe
Restrictions
Risk levels and outbreak assessments
Press releases and statements


If you suspect foot and mouth disease in your animals, you must report it immediately by calling 03000 200 301 in England, 0300 303 8268 in Wales or your local Field Services Office in Scotland.


Foot and mouth disease (FMD) affects cloven-hoofed animals including:


cattle
sheep
pigs
goats
camelids
deer

It does not affect humans.

Livestock keepers must be vigilant to signs of disease and practise good biosecurity.

Current cases in Europe
There are currently no cases in the UK, but there have been confirmed cases in:


Cyprus (February 2026)
Slovakia (March 2025)
Hungary (March 2025)
Germany (January 2025)

The last outbreak in the UK was in 2007.

Restrictions
Bringing food into Great Britain for personal use
You must not bring meat or dairy products from certain animals (including cows, sheep, pigs and goats) into Great Britain for personal use, if those goods are from:


the EU
EFTA States
the Faroe Islands
Greenland

Check the rules for bringing food into Great Britain for personal use.

Commercial trade
There are restrictions on commercially importing certain products from Cyprus due to FMD.

The restrictions apply to:


hay and straw
any live animal belonging to an FMD-susceptible species

Restrictions also apply to the following products from FMD-susceptible animals:


germplasm
fresh meat
meat products, unless suitably heat treated
milk and dairy products, unless suitably treated
animal by-products, such as pet food
casings

Traders must check the rules for imports, exports and EU trade of animals and animal products.

Risk levels and outbreak assessments
The risk of FMD entering the UK is currently assessed as low.

Find details of the evidence that supported the decisions on this risk level in APHA’s outbreak assessments:


foot and mouth disease in water buffalo in Germany
foot and mouth disease in Hungary and Slovakia
foot and mouth disease in North Africa and the Middle East

Foot and mouth disease is not a public health or food safety risk.​

Press releases and statements

18 September 2025 press release: Foot and mouth disease controls amended for Hungary
24 June 2025 press release: Austrian foot and mouth disease controls amended
14 May 2025 press release: Foot and mouth disease controls eased for Germany
11 April 2025 press release: Government extends ban on personal meat imports to protect farmers from foot and mouth
28 March 2025 press release: Import ban of cattle, pigs, sheep, and deer from Austria to protect farmers
24 March 2025: Foot and Mouth disease controls amended in Germany
22 March 2025 press release: Foot and Mouth disease detected in Slovakia
7 March 2025 press release: Import ban of cattle, pigs, sheep and deer from Hungary and Slovakia to protect farmers after foot and mouth case
15 January 2025 statement on foot and mouth disease
14 January 2025 press release: Government introduces import ban of cattle, pigs and sheep from Germany to protect farmers after Foot and Mouth case

https://www.gov.uk/government/news/foot-and-mouth-disease-latest-situation


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