South Korea has confirmed an additional foot-and-mouth disease (FMD) case at a local farm, bringing this year's total cases to four, the agriculture ministry said Friday.

The latest case was found at a beef cattle farm in the central city of Cheongju, some 112 kilometers south of Seoul, late Thursday, which was raising 50 cows, according to the Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs.

The country reported FMD cases on Wednesday for the first time in more than four years, with all the recent contagions occurring at beef cattle farms in the city.

Authorities are culling several hundred cattle and carrying out intensive disinfection work in adjacent cities to prevent the spread of the disease.

The government issued a 48-hour standstill order on all animal farms and related facilities across the nation to remain effective until midnight Saturday.

As a severe and highly transmissible viral disease, FMD causes illness in cows, pigs, goats and other cloven-hoofed animals. It does not affect humans.

Source: Yonhap News Agency