'Goat plague' outbreak in THIS continent has created a scare. Can it infect humans?

A disease called "goat plague" has taken over parts of southern European Union countries and prompted British officials to tighten import controls. The Mirror reported that holidaying Britishers returning from EU countries with food products will be subjected to stricter controls as the government tries to prevent the entry of the deadly pestilence.

The disease is infecting cattle in southern European Union countries. It has a high fatality rate, especially among goats and sheep. Mass culling operations are on to prevent its spread.

United Kingdom is banning the import of unpackaged sheep and goat meat products, along with sheep and goat milk and milk products, from EU countries. This also includes all packaged sheep and goat milk products being brought from Greece and Romania. So expect Customs to throw away all your unlabelled French goat's cheese. Packed feta will likely be seized.

Can goat plague infect humans?

Goat plague is scientifically known as ovine rinderpest or 'peste des petits ruminants' (PPR). The disease only affects livestock so humans are safe from it.

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UK Deputy Chief Veterinary Officer Ele Brown said, "There have been recent outbreaks of peste des petits ruminants in Europe. This poses no risks to humans but causes severe illness in sheep and goats. An outbreak in the UK would lead to animal suffering and be very damaging for our farming and livestock industry."

Cases of PPR are on the rise and the disease is spreading across cattle herds on the continent. In order to prevent the spread of the contagious disease, Romanian farmers are faced with the decision to cull thousands of goats and sheep. The outbreak began in Greece last month after which farmers culled over 10,000 sheep.

Goat plague is likely to cause problems with Greece's economy since feta cheese, made with both goat and cow milk, is one of their biggest exports.