Some residents of Gunungkidul continue to practise brandu, the\nslaughtering and distribution of meat from livestock that have died\nsuddenly. The practice has come under scrutiny after several people in\nthe area were exposed to anthrax following the consumption of, or\ncontact with, goats that had died suddenly.<\/p>\n
The latest case was reported in Mulusan, Paliyan. The Gunungkidul\nAgriculture and Food Office (DPP) received a report of a resident with\nsymptoms of cutaneous anthrax after taking part in brandu involving a\ngoat that had died suddenly.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe received a report from the community health centre that a\nresident had come in with a complaint that their hand had developed a\nlesion, a symptom of anthrax, in Paliyan,\u201d Retno Widyastuti, head of the\nDPP\u2019s Animal Health Division, told detikJogja on Thursday (8 October\n2026.<\/p>\n
The DPP received the report on Tuesday (29 September). Officials then\ncarried out control measures, including vaccination and spraying\nformalin at the slaughter site.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe have tested a soil sample and the result was positive for\nanthrax; the control measures have also been completed. The goat could\nnot be found because it had already been slaughtered and eaten, in what\nis commonly called dibrandu,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n
A similar case had previously occurred in Dadapayu, Semanu. Four\nresidents tested positive for anthrax after suspected exposure from a\ngoat that had died suddenly.<\/p>\n
Gunungkidul Health Office head Ismono said the case came to light\nafter a resident visited a community health centre in early September.\nAn epidemiological investigation subsequently identified seven people\nsuspected of having been exposed to anthrax.<\/p>\n
\u201cAt first, a resident went to the community health centre and was\nfound to have clinical symptoms of anthrax. After the epidemiological\ninvestigation, there were seven suspected cases,\u201d Ismono said on\nThursday (1 October).<\/p>\n
Following PCR tests, four of the seven people tested positive for\nanthrax. Further investigation identified 47 people at risk of exposure\nbecause they had been in contact with the goat or its products.<\/p>\n
\u201cThose 47 people had a history of exposure to the animal or animal\nproducts from a goat that had died suddenly,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
Eko Mujiarto, the Health Office\u2019s zoonotic infectious-disease\nprogramme officer in its Disease Prevention and Control Division,\nconfirmed that all four patients had recovered.<\/p>\n
\u201cThey have all recovered, and there have been no further cases so\nfar,\u201d Eko said on Saturday (3 October 2026).<\/p>\n
Brandu tradition persists<\/strong><\/p>\n Retno Widyastuti explained that brandu is essentially a tradition\nintended to help livestock owners who have suffered a loss. Meat from\nanimals that have died suddenly is sold cheaply to residents, and the\nproceeds are given to the owner.<\/p>\n However, livestock owners can apply for compensation from the regency\ngovernment if they report an animal that has died suddenly.<\/p>\n \u201cIf they report that their livestock has died suddenly, residents can\nreceive compensation from the regency government. Livestock owners are\ntherefore encouraged to report sudden deaths to the animal health\ncentre,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n The compensation is regulated under Regent Regulation No.\u00a010 of 2025\non procedures for providing compensation and\/or assistance in\ncontrolling contagious animal diseases, and compensation for healthy\nanimals culled as a disease-control measure. The funds come from the\nregional budget\u2019s unexpected expenditure allocation (BTT).<\/p>\n Gunungkidul Agriculture and Food Office head Rismiyadi regretted that\nbrandu continued despite repeated public-awareness efforts.<\/p>\n \u201cWe have often gone into the area to provide education, including\nusing traditional arts such as wayang. But, ultimately, raising public\nawareness is difficult,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n According to Rismiyadi, residents who report livestock deaths can\nreceive compensation. Some, however, still choose to slaughter and eat\nthe animals.<\/p>\n \u201cIf an animal is sick or dies, it should be buried and reported; the\nowner can in fact receive compensation from the regency government. But\npeople are reluctant to let it go, so when an animal falls ill, they\nslaughter it first, then eat it and practise brandu,\u201d he said.<\/p>",
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