Wealthy countries that have eradicated FMD face ongoing costs from periodic outbreaks and the costs of maintaining preparedness. Many countries reduce the impact of the disease with extensive ongoing vaccination programmes. The global scale and costs associated with these programmes is vast with billions of doses administered annually. Restricted access to international markets due to FMD greatly reduces revenue for nations with the capacity to export livestock and their products.
The impact of FMD in endemic countries has received less attention than the impact of outbreaks in free countries despite the huge numbers of animals affected and the importance of livestock in these countries (see Table 3). Direct losses due to death and disease are easy to appreciate, however, in endemic countries the burden of FMD often manifests as widespread and ongoing losses that limit development of the livestock sector. FMD impacts on different enterprises and countries in different ways; the consequences of this variable impact and risk should be considered when planning disease control.