'Lumpy Skin Disease' Outbreak Farms to Face 20% Reduction in Culling Compensation

by Ju Sangdon

Published 27 May.2025 11:10(KST)

Compensation for culling due to lumpy skin disease to be reduced by 20 percent
Lumpy skin disease added to list of diseases subject to compensation reduction
Compensation reduction rate for highly pathogenic avian influenza can be eased to 10 percent for farms meeting biosecurity standards
Multiple violations of the same biosecurity obligation will result in a single compensation reduction
Government aims to boost voluntary biosecurity through revised standards

Going forward, compensation for the culling of livestock due to lumpy skin disease will be reduced by 20%, the same as for other livestock infectious diseases such as foot-and-mouth disease.

The Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs announced on May 27 that it had revised and promulgated the Enforcement Decree of the Livestock Infectious Disease Prevention Act to include these provisions.

'Lumpy Skin Disease' Outbreak Farms to Face 20% Reduction in Culling Compensation

In the case of lumpy skin disease, since it can be prevented through vaccination and control of vector insects (such as mosquitoes and flies), the government has established a legal basis to allow a partial reduction (20% of the total assessed value) in the compensation for culling paid to affected farms. This aims to enhance farmers' sense of responsibility for livestock disease prevention. Currently, diseases subject to compensation reduction include foot-and-mouth disease, highly pathogenic avian influenza (AI), and African swine fever (ASF). Lumpy skin disease has now been added to this list.

For highly pathogenic avian influenza (AI), a basis has been established to reduce the compensation reduction rate. If there have been no cases of highly pathogenic avian influenza in the past year and a layer farm meets the biosecurity standards set and announced by the Minister of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs, the reduction in compensation for culling can be eased to 10% of the total assessed value.

Additionally, the compensation reduction standards have been revised so that if there are multiple violations of the same biosecurity compliance obligation, the reduction will only be applied once and not repeatedly.

Choi Jeongrok, Director General of the Animal Health Policy Bureau at the Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs, stated, "By providing benefits to layer farms with excellent biosecurity, we aim to raise the overall biosecurity level of layer farms. We also expect that establishing compensation reduction criteria for lumpy skin disease will increase participation in vaccination and vector insect control among livestock farmers, thereby contributing to the development of a farm-level voluntary biosecurity system."