Kim Jong Il’s Dependence on Oxen Increases Foot-And-Mouth Risks
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North Korea’s dependence on animals to plow fields and haul harvests adds greater urgency to containing an outbreak of foot-and-mouth disease before planting begins in the country, already dependent on food handouts.
“Oxen are so important in North Korea’s agricultural industry that the government owns them all, while individuals can keep pigs,” said Kwon Tae Jin, vice president of the Korea Rural Economic Research in Seoul. “During the rice planting season you can see more oxen than tractors.”