Kogi advises residents to avoid beef for one week after ‘mysterious death’ of 20 cows

Residents of Kogi have been advised to avoid beef for at least one week following the “mysterious death” of 20 cows in Lokoja, the state capital.

Salau Tarawa, director of veterinary services, Kogi ministry of agriculture, gave the advice at a media briefing on Thursday.

According to him, there was a possibility that the cows ingested poisonous substances while grazing.

Tarawa said meat from some of the affected cows were already in markets in Lokoja, but had been recalled.

He said some of the beef had been taken to markets in Osara in Adavi LGA, Ajaokuta, Obajana, Kotonkarfe and Kakanda for sale, adding that the ministry was collaborating with security agencies to investigate the incident.

Speaking on the development, Bayode Emmanuel, head of the agro rangers unit, Kogi command, Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC), said the cows were discovered in Lokoja.

“The cows emerged from the back of the state’s secretariat complex where they had gone to graze. All of a sudden, they started behaving funny, slumped and died within minutes,” he said.

“Upon interrogation, the herder said he was coming out with the cows after grazing when the incident happened.”

Emmanuel assured residents that the NSCDC would investigate the development to ascertain where the cows had grazed and also work towards preventing the sale and consumption of the meat from the affected animals.

The development comes almost two years after a similar incident in Lokoja.

Twelve cows were said to have died mysteriously in April 2020, after which the state government banned the consumption of beef for 48 hours.