Eradicating foot and mouth disease in North America, 1946-1954

Abstract

During the early twentieth century, Canada, Mexico, and the United States governments coordinated to prevent foot and mouth disease from entering their borders. These policies facilitated the trade of livestock and related products across the Mexico-United States and Canada-United States borders, in particular cattle and hay. Outbreaks of the disease in Mexico and Canada in the 1940s and 1950s threatened the free movement of people, animals, and goods as the United States implemented border closures and importation bans. In each country, veterinarians, livestock owners, politicians, and government officials debated how to prevent foot-and-mouth disease from spreading and restore the normal movement of non-human animals between the nations. These discussions raised larger questions about the technical and financial plans to eradicate foot-and-mouth disease, different modes of intergovernmental cooperation, sovereignty, and the borders. (Read full abstract in the WAHVM 2020 proceedings https://repository.up.ac.za/handle/2263/74425)