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In France, this livestock epidemic of contagious nodular dermatitis is shaking up the cattle industry. On December 12, 2025, the new Minister of Agriculture Annie Genevard confirms a line: total culling of infected herds, zoning and vaccination around outbreak centers, from the Alps to the Pyrenees. The new Minister of Agriculture shows marked radicalism. It is applied through various concrete measures. In addition, the state promises aid to livestock farmers. However, unions and environmentalists are defending other alternatives. An investigation as close as possible to the farms and the decisions.
On A Hill In Ariège, A Day That Takes A Turn
The tractors closed the road at dawn. At the end of the gray ribbon, the farm overlooks Les Bordes-sur-Arize (Ariège). In the yard, a veterinarian, wearing a fluorescent armband, quietly lays out the protocol: movement restrictions, secured perimeter, samples. The word lands, heavy as a storm cloud: "depopulation." Around them, neighbors stay put, arms crossed. “We want to understand,” says one of them. Others call for staying calm. In the bed of a pickup: disposable gloves, boot covers, sealed bags. Contagious nodular dermatitis (CND) has shattered the ordinary day of animals and people.
Since June 29, 2025, the date of the first outbreak in Savoie, the epidemic has drawn a diagonal line of alerts across the map: Alps, Jura, then Pyrenees. On December 9, more than one hundred cattle outbreaks had been detected in France. These figures come from the ministry, but the perimeters and counts remain fluid. Ariège has now entered the statistics too. The procedures apply on the farm, on the roads, in the slaughterhouses.
At The Ministry, A Clear Line: “Culling Is The Only Solution”
In Paris, Annie Genevard, Minister of Agriculture, repeats her position: “culling is the only solution” to stamp out outbreaks and protect the industry. CND, she recalls, is highly contagious, vector-borne (transmitted notably by insects), and sometimes difficult to detect at the outset. An outbreak that is poorly contained “would create a major risk for the herd.” The Minister of Agriculture stands by a strict protocol: total culling in infected farms, disinfection, monitoring, and regulated zones.
The figures she cites are striking: “108 eradicated outbreaks” and “3,000 cattle culled.” That represents about 0.02% of the national herd. A worst-case scenario puts the number at “up to 1.5 million cattle dead” if the disease spreads. The comparison is meant to justify the radical response. “Not a single euro will be lost,” she also promises livestock farmers. She cites compensation to back that up. That compensation covers the value of the animals, operating losses, and sanitary costs.
Who Is Annie Genevard, Minister Of Agriculture?
Elected from the Doubs, a literature teacher by training, Annie Genevard has built a reputation as a woman of order and method in the chamber and in government alike. Her career includes the mayorship of Morteau, the National Assembly, and then Agriculture. That sheds light on a culture of decision-making. It also reveals a close relationship with public authority. In Annie Genevard’s office, health and commercial dossiers are closely followed, along with dairy exports and the course of food sovereignty. For those close to her, her line is simple: stand by the trade-offs when animal health and the collective interest are at stake. Official profile ; government fact sheet.
A European Protocol, French Procedures
The strategy fits within a European framework: zoning, reducing animal movements, “stamping-out” (depopulation in outbreaks), and vaccination as pillars. The European Commission took emergency measures in 2025. It requires the establishment of restricted zones. In addition, it authorizes states to activate exceptional tools. European law (the “animal health” regulation) and national decrees govern checks. They also regulate transport, slaughter, and compensation. Finally, they ensure traceability. For France, this means maps that evolve with prefectural orders. In addition, enhanced veterinary inspections are applied. Also, finely targeted derogations prevent the industry from being strangled.
Vaccination, Zoning, Compensation: Promises And Constraints
Around each outbreak, the system combines protection zones (up to 50 km depending on the texts) and mandatory vaccination. The minister says she is studying an expansion of vaccination, while stressing the logistical constraints: dose volumes, cold chain, veterinarians mobilized, prioritization by age or use. The maps have already been expanded in the Southwest after outbreaks appeared far from the Alpine zones. Farmers, for their part, are asking for clear schedules, kept payment deadlines, and proof that vaccination is “following” the virus.
On the compensation side, the state promises a full safety net: market value, operating losses, disinfection. The commitment to full coverage — “not a single euro” — is as much about budget credibility as it is about social peace. Many are calling for a one-stop shop, publicized rate schedules, and verifiable deadlines.
Farmers’ And Unions’ Counterattack
On the ground, anger is surfacing. Farmer collectives have interrupted culling operations. In fact, this mostly happens when the disease affects only one animal in a herd. The Confédération Paysanne is leading the fight against “all culling”: it argues for an alternative protocol — targeted culling, reinforced monitoring, expanded vaccination — and has called for blockades “everywhere in France.” Other organizations, more concerned with sanitary safety, are mainly asking for guarantees on fairness between departments and on the responsiveness of services.
In the Pyrenees, the announcement of the euthanasia of a herd of around 200 cows has crystallized tensions and clashes. Prefects insist on the rule of law, and veterinarians warn about the danger of an intervention being blocked. “No violence,” the minister repeats, saying she understands the distress but refusing to disarm the protocol.
Environmentalists And The Question Of Animal Welfare
On the environmentalist side, Marine Tondelier and animal rights elected officials are calling for transparency and proportionality. They want the publication of inspection reports and evaluations of alternatives. In addition, slaughter conditions must meet the highest animal welfare standards. Also, vaccination must be maximized when it is effective. Associations urge people to measure the suffering caused by the disease itself, such as ulcers and wasting. In addition, the drop in milk production must be weighed against that of a sanitary operation under veterinary oversight. Here, the debate is not only between farmers and the administration; it also questions what the public is willing to accept to avoid worse.
Sidebar — CND: What Are We Talking About?
Contagious nodular dermatitis (CND, lumpy skin disease) is a viral disease of cattle; it is not transmissible to humans. It spreads notably through biting insects and causes skin nodules, fever, lesions, and production losses. First seen in Africa, it spread to Asia and Europe. Detection in France: June 2025. To go further: Anses fact sheet (scientific base) and European regulations. Anses – CND ; Ministerial update.
Why Total Culling?
In eradication strategies in Europe, the “stamping-out” option aims to eliminate quickly a viral source that is difficult to detect early and remains active even in silent carriers. Combined with zoning and vaccination, it reduces exposure time as well as market disruptions. In addition, it includes exports by shortening the episode. This logic is not absolute: it requires fair compensation, strict oversight of the steps (capture, stunning, killing, rendering) and public assessments of the effects.
Is Animal Welfare Properly Defended?
French regulations require animal welfare officers in slaughterhouses and procedures intended to reduce suffering. The field reality disrupts these principles: urgent operations, isolated farms, social tensions. Hence the demand for trained teams, audits, and a public lessons learned review at the end of the crisis. Associations are asking for the publication of reports and incidents (where applicable). Farmers, for their part, want to be able to see, understand, and be compensated without delays.
A Doctrine Under Commercial Pressure
Another argument is circulating in the corridors: France’s sanitary credibility in the eyes of its customers. Export restrictions could be imposed if the strategy is deemed insufficient. Raw-milk cheeses, for example, are already facing additional requirements in some markets. It’s a balancing act: protect animal health without undermining the industry’s image in the long run.
A Method, Cracks: What The Genevard Affair Says
Beyond the sanitary case, the episode reveals the strengths and limits of a method: vertical, assumed, measured against quick results. Annie Genevard, Minister of Agriculture, is taking the political risk of a radical and unpopular strategy in some areas. She advances sanitary public order, promises compensation, and seeks support in European law. On the other side, opponents emphasize proportionality, ethics, and the resilience of livestock operations.
What Everyone Is Looking At Now
In three, six, twelve months, the question will be measurable. At least three indicators will show whether the strategy has held:
- Epidemiology: a clear drop in new outbreaks over several weeks. No lasting spread beyond the initial zones, shortened extinction time for outbreaks.
- Vaccination: coverage rate in nearby zones close to 100%, availability of doses, deadlines respected between order and injection.
- Economy & Trade: relaxation of export restrictions, resumption of flows, compensation paid to 100% of beneficiaries within public deadlines.
To these benchmarks, one can add the quality of operations: documented incidents, published audits, shared lessons learned. In short: not only how many outbreaks, but how the response was carried out.
What Will Decide It
What public indicator will make it possible to say the strategy succeeded? The ministry points to the disappearance of outbreaks and a protected herd. Farmers expect fast payments and proof that total culling avoids a long-term crisis. Environmentalists are calling for guarantees on animal welfare and transparency. The answer, verifiable, will come through shared figures and publicly released reports, with no blind spots.