Lumpy skin disease: what retailers need to know

Lumpy Skin Disease (LSD). It sounds like something out of a horror movie. And it’s certainly having devastating repercussions across the cheese manufacturing and retail industries.

By now (if you’re a retailer or wholesaler of cheese or dairy) you should have been informed that the flow of some products from mainland Europe has been halted due to an LSD outbreak – the first time cases have been detected since 2018.

Italy notified WOAH (World Organisation for Animal Health), confirming cases on a cattle farm in Sardinia on 21st June, while in France the first case was confirmed in Chambery on 29th June, with specific imports being restricted from 25th June and 1st July respectively.

As it stands, no cases have been reported in the UK, and the risk of animals contracting it here is considered low.

What is lumpy skin disease (LSD)?

The disease predominantly affects ruminants (cows and water buffalo in particular) not sheep and goats, and is highly contagious, spread by biting insects such as mosquitos.

Symptoms of lumpy skin disease are quite flu-like, including weakness, discharge from the nasal passages and eyes, sudden fever, skin lesions and swollen lymph nodes.

Can lumpy skin disease be passed on to humans?

No. Experts say there is no risk of lumpy skin disease affecting humans.

Which products are affected by lumpy skin disease?

Guidance has been released from the Government by the official veterinary surgeon (OVS), regarding imports from Italy and France.

Most notable for speciality retailers and cheesemongers are the restrictions on dairy products of bovine origin – especially milk, and softer style raw milk cheeses.

Under the guidance, any Italian or French dairy product (cow’s milk) that has been treated at a heat less than pasteurisation (72C for at least 15 seconds) and that hasn’t been through an ageing or maturation process, is banned from import into the UK. 

Additionally, unpasteurised cheeses that started their ageing or maturation process after 23rd May, are banned from import.

The OVS clarified that dairy products which have undergone a lower heat treatment and an ageing process which commenced before 23rd May, are exempt from the ban, though consignments will need to have proof of heat treatment and processes being completed before the cut-off date.

When will the impacted products be available again?

It’s hard to say. Defra will issue further guidance in future weeks/months.

What can retailers do now?

In the face of losing some of your favourite continental cheeses, why not take the opportunity to reach out to your supplier/wholesaler/local cheesemaker, to see if you can replace them with British alternatives.

The British cheese landscape is awash with every kind of cheese you could possibly want, from dainty, wrinkled soft goats’ cheeses, to bloomy Bries and Camemberts,  powerful washed rinds, Alpine styles, and (of course) our mighty territorials.

Now could be the time to introduce your customer base to the diverse joy of what’s made on home turf.