Seoul, March 18 : South Korea has reported an additional foot-and-mouth disease (FMD) case at local cattle farms, raising the number of cases this year to eight, the agriculture ministry said.

The latest case was found at three beef cattle farms in the county of Yeongam, about 300 kilometers south of Seoul, where 12 cows were confirmed to have been infected, according to the Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs, Yonhap news agency reported.

The farms were located near a local farm where this year's first FMD case broke out last week for the first time in almost two years. The infected cattle at the farms will be culled, the ministry said, adding it has taken other necessary quarantine measures.

Following the first outbreak, the government has raised the crisis level for Yeongam and several other adjacent regions to "serious," the highest level of its four-tier system, and has begun a nationwide FMD vaccination programme, initially planned for next month.

FMD is an acute infectious viral disease that causes illness in cows, pigs, goats, and other cloven-hoofed animals. It does not affect humans.

The latest outbreak comes after two years. The country last reported FMD cases in May 2023.

Acting President Choi Sang-mok has directed relevant ministries to implement thorough preventive measures to contain the outbreak at an early stage.

"The Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs must closely cooperate with relevant agencies to swiftly carry out emergency actions, including rapid culling, entry controls, testing and disinfection, in accordance with the emergency response guidelines," Choi said.

Earlier in January, South Korea placed an import ban on German pork following an outbreak of the highly contagious FMD disease in the European nation, Yonhap reported.

The Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs said the decision was made after Germany reported its first FMD case since 1988.

/IANS