South Africa’s ongoing foot-and-mouth disease (FMD) outbreak persists across all provinces despite widespread vaccination efforts, with farmers warning that the disease may never be controlled if the current approach continues. The outbreak has prompted government and provincial responses involving movement restrictions, surveillance, and a risk-based vaccination campaign targeting at least 80% coverage of the national herd.
The Department of Agriculture confirms FMD vaccination is strictly controlled, carried out only by state veterinary services or private veterinarians under state supervision, to support restoring South Africa’s internationally recognised FMD-free status. By late March 2026, over two million cattle had been vaccinated nationwide, with provinces such as the Western Cape and North West reporting over 48,000 and one million animals vaccinated respectively.
However, farmers remain concerned about the existing strategy’s effectiveness. Andrew Morphew, a dairy farmer and spokesperson for FMD Response SA, said during a panel discussion published on 10 October 2026, “If we continue on our current path, we will never control FMD. There is no broad surveillance taking place, so we do not know where the virus is or how prevalent it is. We are counting doses administered when we should be measuring how many animals are immune at any given time.” Morphew emphasised the need for enhanced surveillance and faster reporting to better track disease prevalence.
Recent government data shows that outbreaks continue despite extensive vaccination programmes. The Free State province, for example, reported a new clinically confirmed case in Fauresmith as of late September 2026, with 799 total cases recorded so far. The Free State Department of Agriculture noted that more than 1.6 million cattle had received their first vaccination dose. Provinces like North West are aiming to reach 80% herd vaccination coverage by August 2026 but still had active cases earlier in the year.
Farmers like Tom Turner stress the economic impact of the disease and the importance of vaccination. Turner told Farmers Weekly that without vaccination, his losses would have reached approximately R12 million, which could have ended his dairy business. He described vaccination as “effectively an insurance policy” that is critical to sustaining farming operations amid the outbreak.
The current government strategy combines vaccination with diagnostics, traceability, and movement controls. Still, official reports acknowledge the challenge of managing an outbreak that remains active and widespread. The Department of Agriculture’s technical report from June 2026 reiterates the importance of at least 80% vaccination coverage nationwide to control the disease, which has undermined South Africa’s FMD-free status since 2019 after detection in a previously free zone.
Despite vaccine doses exceeding four million since February 2026 and an extensive national roll-out, the persistence of new cases underlines concerns about surveillance adequacy and immunity monitoring raised by farmers. Independent verification of some farmers’ claims about surveillance gaps and vaccine immunity duration remains limited, but the tension between official data and farmer experience signals a complex control battle.
As the outbreak evolves, the focus will be on whether the government can strengthen surveillance systems, improve immunity tracking beyond dose counts, and maintain compliance with movement controls to finally bring the disease under control. The next key update is expected as provinces complete their vaccination targets by late 2026 and report on case trends thereafter.