What is lumpy skin disease? Is it safe to consume milk?

The lumpy skin disease has created havoc in India. The disease, which mostly affects cattle, has now spread to over ten states in India. Reportedly, it has already killed 75,000 cattle in the country.

The virus mostly affects cows, buffaloes and deer. Lumpy skin disease is a viral disease and is transmitted by blood-feeding insects, such as certain species of flies and mosquitoes, or ticks. It causes fever and nodules on the skin and can lead to the death of the cattle.

Lumpy skin disease is a contagious viral disease that spreads among cattle through mosquitoes, flies, lice and wasps by direct contact, as also through contaminated food and water. It does not transmit from cattle to humans.


The symptoms include high fever, reduced milk production, skin nodules, loss of appetite, increased nasal discharge and watery eyes, among others.

According to the Centre, the disease has spread in Gujarat, Rajasthan, Punjab, Haryana, Uttar Pradesh and Andhra Pradesh.

The disease was first reported in India in 2019.

Meanwhile, providing relief to the livestock of the country, Union Minister for Agriculture and Farmers Welfare Narendra Singh Tomar on August 10 launched the indigenous vaccine Lumpi-ProVac to protect livestock from Lumpy skin disease.

The vaccine has been developed by the National Equine Research Center, Hisar (Haryana) in collaboration with the Indian Veterinary Research Institute, Izzatnagar (Bareilly).

Is it safe to consume milk?
Animals can be cured from Lumpy, however, the milk of such animals may get affected due to the virus, according to reports. However, lumpy skin disease is a non-zoonotic infection and not transmissible from animals to humans. Hence, there is no danger to humans in eating meat or using the milk of animals that do not have the symptoms of Lumpy.

"It is safe to consume milk from the infected cattle. There is no problem in the quality of milk even if you have it after boiling or without boiling," Indian Veterinary Research Institute (IVRI) Joint Director Ashok Kumr Mohanty told PTI.

However, milk production in the infected cattle gets affected depending on the severity of the disease and immunity level of the animal, he added.

"When cattle are infected, the animals become weak due to nodule formation, fever and other symptoms. This severely affects milk production. When the animal is dying, its entire body system is affected," he said.