Two local breeds of livestock – the fat-tail sheep and red cattle – have been infected by foot and mouth disease (FMD) and the authorities are in a quandary over what to. These rare breeds, specific to Cyprus, could disappear from the island even if some of them are spared, experts warned. The remaining population might not be sufficient to ensure the survival of the fat-tail sheep, warned an academic at the technical university Tepak.

According to the agriculture ministry, some 33 red cattle and 320 fat-tail sheep were infected. Rare breeds of animal can be spared, according to the EU rules and the local legislation, said the spokesperson of the Veterinary Service, Sotiria Georgiadou. Scientific documentation of the animals’ genetic purity would have to be provided, and the service would have to factor in the proportion of animals infected, she said. The service would subsequently weigh the risks and potential benefits of any decision to cull or spare the animals. A decision will be taken by the end of the week, she said.

These are very difficult decisions for the authorities, which have had to take a tough line, ignoring the understandable protests by livestock farmers who have seen their livelihoods taken away from them. In the circumstances, the authorities had no choice but to order the culling of thousands of animals, despite the protest gatherings of the farmers which probably made the situation worse by assisting the spread of the highly contagious virus. Only last week, they gathered at the Rizoelia roundabout to protest by disrupting traffic during the informal EU summit.

It was good to hear President Nikos Christodoulides express strong disapproval over the failure of the farmers to comply with the protocols. “The reason we still have these problems is because some are not following the protocols,” he said on Tuesday. As long as there were actions “deviating from the protocols implemented in all countries, the problem will continue troubling all of us,” he said, and it was difficult to disagree with him.

In fairness, right from the start, the government was very clear about what should be done, citing the EU directives and the protocols for dealing with FMD. There were no negotiations and no consensus solutions, the objective being to limit the spread and the only way to do this being the culling of animals in units in which symptoms appeared. Farmers gathered to protest, making the situation worse, by helping the spread of the virus. If one criticism could be made of the government it was that it was not forceful enough in stopping these gatherings.

In the end, all the necessary culling will take place, while the cost to the taxpayer will keep rising because the government seems inclined to keep upping the compensation offered to the farmers. Christodoulides said as much on Tuesday, claiming the “fiscal policy allows the state to respond” the farmers’ needs. Farmers must be bailed out by the state.