Soldiers to blame for outbreak in Belgium?

In Belgium, there is much speculation about how African swine fever entered the country. After truck drivers and hunters were previously accused, the finger is now being pointed at the Belgian military.

The reason for this is the discovery of 2 infected wild boars on a military site in Lagland (in the province of Luxembourg). The site is in the contaminated zone. The cadavers were discovered on September 21 and were already in an advanced state of decomposition, various Belgian media reported.

'Patient Zero'
The boars had probably been dead for 3 to 4 weeks by then. African swine fever was diagnosed for the first time on Thursday 13 September established in Belgium. This suggests that these swine may be 'patient zero', ie the animal that became infected first. The 'Belgian Defense' has now confirmed that the boars have been found on their property. The site has now been fully disinfected.

Army units from Belgium and other countries train at the military base, which means that soldiers come and go. They may have brought the animal disease from Eastern Europe, where they also practice a lot.

More than 40 infections 
The number of infected wild boars in Belgium has now risen to over 40. All these animals were found in the infected zone of approximately 63.000 hectares. 

Wouter Job

Wouter Baan is editor-in-chief of Boerenbusiness. He also focuses on dairy, pig and meat markets. He also follows (business) developments within agribusiness and interviews CEOs and policymakers.

w.baan@boerenbusiness. Nl

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