Lesvos livestock crisis: Deputy Minister addresses African Swine Fever

Athanasios Kavvadas, the Deputy Minister of Rural Development and Food, conducted a two-day visit to Lesvos to address the ongoing African Swine Fever crisis. During the visit, the Deputy Minister met with regional authorities, including Governor Kostas Moutzouris, and various agricultural stakeholders, including livestock farmers, veterinarians, and cheesemakers.

Local agricultural unions organized protests to present a framework of demands, expressing concerns over the survival of their livelihoods. While the Deputy Minister stated that animal tracing is expected to reach 100% completion by late September or early October, livestock representatives expressed dissatisfaction, noting a lack of substantive commitments or changes to the current management policy.

Regarding economic relief, Kavvadas indicated that compensation payments are expected to be processed in October, with approximately 100 farmers scheduled to receive payments next week for animals culled under sanitary measures. The management of the virus has notably been delegated to the Ministry of National Defence, a move that follows previous regional decisions to pause sampling and animal culling during the height of the crisis.