Greece records 22 cases of PPR goat and sheep plague most in Thessaly

Greece has recorded so far a total of 22 cases of small-ruminants plague (Peste des petits ruminants, PPR) nationally, authorities said on Tuesday.

According to data so far, 20 of these cases were identified in Thessaly, 1 in Corinth, and 1 in Attica. A total of 10,768 animals have been slaughtered and another 2,000 are expected to take place soon.

Agricultural Development and Foods Secretary General Giorgos Stratakos, who took part at an urgent meeting of Attica Region earlier in the day, said "at this point, we are at the phase of scientific investigation. We are waiting for the results from veterinarians working on the specific issue."

All animal movements are being traced. In Attica and Corinth specifically, Stratakos said, specimen-taking took place by "following specific animal flows and seeing from the initially infected units which animals have come in and which have left."

The European Union protocol for every confirmed infection in a unit is to follow all animals or have a landfill burial followed by disinfection of the unit and its quarantine.