South Africa's agriculture minister, John Steenhuisen, said on Sunday the country had received the first batch of a 3.5 million-dose consignment of foot-and-mouth disease (FMD) vaccines from Argentina, as authorities intensify efforts to contain the country's worst outbreak in years.

Steenhuisen urged provincial departments to accelerate vaccinations, saying the priority over the coming weeks was to inoculate as many animals as possible.

"This is the largest single consignment of FMD vaccines ever imported into South Africa," Steenhuisen said in a statement.

The ministry said the remainder of the shipment from Argentine manufacturer Biogénesis Bagó was expected later this week, bringing the total number of imported doses secured by South Africa to 13.5 million by the end of May.

"If we maintain this disciplined and aggressive trajectory and ensure these vaccines are administered rapidly and effectively, we can ensure that South Africa never again experiences outbreaks on this scale," Steenhuisen added.

South Africa has been battling a widespread outbreak of the highly contagious livestock disease since early 2025, with several provinces affected and farmers warning of mounting economic losses. Authorities say the latest imports form part of a broader strategy to achieve "FMD-free with vaccination" status while protecting food security, exports, and rural livelihoods.

In April, the government announced the arrival of two million vaccine doses from Türkiye and said a further four million doses had been ordered from Turkish supplier Dollvet.

The agriculture ministry said South Africa had already received four million vaccine doses since February, including 2.5 million from Biogénesis Bagó and 1.5 million from Dollvet, in addition to two million doses imported in late 2025.

Foot-and-mouth disease is a highly infectious viral disease affecting cattle, pigs, sheep, and goats. Although rarely fatal in adult animals, outbreaks can severely disrupt livestock production and meat exports.