The Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs plans to develop a vaccine for foot-and-mouth disease (FMD) by the second half of next year amid a series of outbreaks in pigs that were previously administered foreign-made vaccines.
 
Joo Yi-seok, head of the animal disease control bureau at the Animal and Plant Quarantine Agency, told reporters Thursday that the agency plans to complete the ongoing construction of a vaccine research institute around August and focus on developing an FMD vaccine.
 
Responding to a KBS report that vaccinated pigs had been diagnosed with FMD, Joo confirmed that some had contracted the disease, adding that a vaccine may not work if viruses enter the body before antibodies can form.
 
Joo said the agency has asked the U.K.-based Pirbright Laboratory to examine the effects of the vaccine against the FMD strain currently spreading in South Korea. The result of the examination is slated to be released next month.