EU updates restrictions on sheep and goat pox in Romania after 30 additional outbreaks

The decision adopted on October 14 changes the protection and surveillance zones and provides for additional restrictions in 13 counties. Deadlines vary between areas, and some entries in the annex are inconsistent. The disease affects sheep and goats and is not transmitted to humans.

Through a decision adopted on October 14, 2026, the European Commission changed the zones and deadlines for restrictions on sheep and goat pox in Romania, following the notification of 30 additional outbreaks between September 8 and October 9, 2026. The measures aim to limit the spread of the disease between holdings and have consequences for the movement of sheep and goats. The timetable varies by zone, and the completion of one stage does not mean that all restrictions in the respective county have been lifted.

In brief
The Commission changed the zones and deadlines for the restrictions after 30 additional outbreaks were notified between September 8 and October 9.

Five-kilometre protection zones and 20-kilometre surveillance zones are established around the outbreaks.

The additional zones cover 13 counties, excluding the protection and surveillance areas. For this category, the deadline indicated is December 10.

The annexes contain inconsistencies in boundaries and periods. The conditions for moving animals must be established with the competent veterinary and food safety authority.

The disease is not transmitted to humans, but threatens herd health and may disrupt animal transport and breeders’ activities.

Implementing Decision (EU) 2026/2321 was adopted on October 14 and published in the Official Journal of the EU on October 16. It replaces the annexes to the decision establishing emergency measures for Romania. The update changes the geographical boundaries and periods set out in these annexes, depending on the development of the epidemic and the risk of disease transmission.

The 30 additional outbreaks were notified in Brăila, Buzău, Constanța, Giurgiu, Gorj, Ialomița, Iași, Teleorman, Tulcea and Vrancea, according to the Commission. Some were outside the areas already subject to restrictions. In this context, the document mentions Ialomița, Giurgiu, Teleorman and Vrancea, where the disease had not previously been reported. The figure describes notifications during the period specified in the decision and does not represent a total of all active outbreaks in Romania on the date this article was published.

Around the outbreaks, Annex I delineates protection zones within a radius of five kilometres and surveillance zones within a radius of 20 kilometres, based on the coordinates entered in the document. Protection areas are excluded from the surrounding surveillance zone. This separation allows measures to be applied according to proximity to the outbreak, within the framework of European animal disease control rules.

For breeders and carriers, the classification of the holding within the respective area is what matters. A surveillance zone may extend beyond the county in which the outbreak is located. For example, around the outbreaks in Buzău, the decision includes parts of Buzău, Brăila and Ialomița. Around those in Iași, surveillance also covers parts of Neamț. These boundaries do not mean that all holdings in the listed counties are subject to the same veterinary and sanitary regime.

Beyond the areas close to the outbreaks, Part B of Annex I establishes additional restriction zones. They cover the territories of 13 counties, excluding the portions already classified as protection or surveillance areas. The list includes Ialomița, Buzău, Brăila, Iași, Neamț, Gorj, Hunedoara, Teleorman, Tulcea, Constanța, Galați, Giurgiu and Vrancea. For this category, the table indicates December 10, 2026.

Annex II provides for a subsequent stage, from December 11, 2026, to January 9, 2027, for the areas referred to in Article 1b of the basic decision. However, the published text contains a territorial inconsistency. Hunedoara appears in the county column but is missing from the adjacent description of the area. Annex I also contains overlaps between the periods listed for protection and surveillance in some areas of Iași and Tulcea. The document therefore does not provide an unambiguous timetable for every local situation.

The purpose of the measures is to prevent the transmission of the disease from one holding to another and to other regions or Member States. The Commission states that outbreaks may disrupt animal movements and trade in products of animal origin, including exports to third countries. The October decision changes the regionalisation annexes; through this amendment, it does not announce a general resumption of sheep and goat exports.

Sheep and goat pox is a viral disease that may cause fever, lesions of the skin and internal organs, and animal deaths. The World Organisation for Animal Health states that the viruses responsible do not infect humans. The risk addressed by the European measures concerns herd health and economic losses for breeders.

For a specific animal movement, the farm’s classification and the applicable conditions must be established with the competent veterinary and food safety directorate. The distinction between areas remains essential. The date on which protection around an outbreak ends may be followed by surveillance or other restrictions, and simply reaching a deadline in the table does not constitute a transport authorisation.

https://2eu.brussels/ro/news/comisia-extinde-restrictiile-pentru-variola-ovina-si-caprina-din-romania-dupa-30-de-focare-suplimentare