139 diseased cattle destroyed

BANDUNG: At least 139 cattle infected with Brucellosis have been destroyed this year in West Java, the local animal husbandry office said on Friday.

Tine Nuarasih, head of animal disease observation and investigation at the husbandry office, said the infected cattle had to be slaughtered to prevent the bacteria from infecting other livestock and consumers.

"Brucellosis is an infectious disease. A person who drinks milk from the cattle contaminated by brucella abortus can suffer a digestive problem," she told journalists in Bandung, West Java.

However, she said meat from the infected cattle could still be consumed after the uteri were removed, as the bacteria only attacked the cow's reproductive organs.

There were no reports that any one had been infected by the bacteria.

Tine said the bacteria was quite dangerous and could cripple the milk industry in West Java. -- JP