Beware of Livestock Disease Outbreaks: These are the Provinces with the Largest Water Buffalo Populations

In early May 2022, several regions in Indonesia were hit by an outbreak of foot-and-mouth disease (FMD) affecting livestock.

The Ministry of Agriculture has designated two districts in Aceh and four districts in East Java as FMD outbreak areas.

However, the disease is claimed to be harmless to humans.

"What we need to understand is that this FMD is indeed dangerous for animals, but it is not contagious or does not pose a risk to human health," said Minister of Agriculture Syahrul Yasin Limpo in his press statement on Tuesday (10/5/2022).

"Therefore, we will make various efforts to overcome this FMD," he continued.

According to the Ministry of Agriculture, this disease is prone to infecting ruminant livestock, namely cattle, goats, sheep, deer, and buffalo.

One region that needs to be wary of the spread of this livestock FMD is East Nusa Tenggara (NTT).

According to the *2021 Livestock and Animal Health Statistics*, NTT is the province with the largest buffalo population in Indonesia, namely 1.9 thousand head or 16.05% of the total national buffalo population.

The next province with the largest buffalo population is South Sulawesi with 122 thousand head (10.26%). Followed by West Nusa Tenggara (NTB) 116.5 thousand head (9.8%), Aceh 104.7 thousand head (8.8%), and North Sumatra 99.9 thousand head (8.4%).

Throughout 2021, the total buffalo population in Indonesia is estimated to have reached 1.19 million head. This number increased by 3.03% compared to the previous year's population of 1.15 million head.

(Also Read: Indonesia Imports Buffalo Meat, How Much is the Local Supply?)