New project targets cross-border livestock disease threats in Eastern Macedonia and Thrace
The project, titled “Addressing Cross-Border Threats to Livestock: Risk Points for Disease Entry and Spread in the Region of Eastern Macedonia and Thrace,” is being implemented by the Veterinary Research Institute (VRI) of ELGO-DIMITRA in cooperation with the Region of Eastern Macedonia and Thrace.
The launch event will take place at 5 p.m. on Monday, September 28, at the Center for Exotic Diseases in Orestiada. Deputy Minister of Rural Development and Food Athanasios Kavvadas, Eastern Macedonia and Thrace Regional Governor Christodoulos Topsidis, and ELGO-DIMITRA President Spyridon Mamalis are scheduled to attend. A scientific presentation by the Veterinary Research Institute will focus on cross-border animal diseases, with emphasis on prevention, surveillance and livestock protection.
FOCUS ON DISEASE ENTRY AND SPREAD
The project will examine critical points through which pathogens could enter and spread across the region. Its activities include sampling at livestock farms and slaughterhouses, investigating the role of wildlife and pathogen-carrying arthropods, and conducting laboratory analyses.
Training and information activities will also be organized for veterinarians, livestock farmers and other stakeholders, focusing on risk identification and the implementation of biosecurity measures.
The project is particularly relevant to Eastern Macedonia and Thrace because of the region's extensive land borders with Türkiye and Bulgaria. Systematic field monitoring is intended to provide scientific data that can help authorities design more targeted disease surveillance and prevention measures.
The project's findings are also expected to support measures aimed at protecting livestock populations and farmers' incomes, while contributing to public health protection. These are stated objectives of the project rather than independently established outcomes.
€300,000 PROJECT BUDGET
The total budget is €300,000. The Region of Eastern Macedonia and Thrace is providing €200,000, while €100,000 is being funded through the Ministry of Rural Development and Food's Agriculture and Livestock Fund.
The scientific coordinator is Dr. Smaragda Sotiraki, Research Director at the Veterinary Research Institute of ELGO-DIMITRA.
The project, known as ASPIDA-AMTH, has been under development since earlier in 2026, with ELGO-DIMITRA issuing calls for personnel to support its implementation.
