| Home > Resources > Leadership > Executive Summary > Case Studies Case Study 2001, Economic Repercussions of Foot and Mouth Disease Financial losses from an epidemic can be dramatic and glaring. To control the 2001 foot-and-mouth disease outbreak in the United Kingdom, 1/8 of all farm animals—8 million animals across 9,677 farms—were slaughtered. By June 2001, 7,800 farmers and farm workers had lost their jobs; revenues for feed producers, rural businesses, and tourist enterprises plummeted. If there were a comparable FMD outbreak in the U.S., it is estimated that losses would be $14 billion—a 9.5% drop in farm income including lost export markets, curtailed domestic demand due to consumer concerns, and infected animal removal.
References
Brown P. Foot and mouth epidemic officially over. Guardian Unlimited; 29 December 2001. Accessed 29 July 2003. Paarlberg PL, Lee JG Lee, Seitzinger AH. Potential revenue impact of an outbreak of foot-and-mouth disease in the United States. Journal of the American Veterinary Medical Association 2002; 220(7):988-992. |
