02.12.2004

The Netherlands

In the Netherlands mass culling of animals during an outbreak of an infectious disease will no longer be practiced, according to Dutch agriculture minister, Cees Veerman. Mass culling has been carried out in recent years following outbreaks of avian flu on chicken farms and foot-and-mouth disease in cattle. However, Veerman said that culling in future would be restricted to the animals directly affected or in the vicinity of the outbreak.
He also said healthy animals would be vaccinated to protect them from the infection.