News African swine fever
Poland investigates more dead boars near Germany
A second case of African swine fever has been found in Poland near the border with the state of Brandenburg, the State Veterinary Institute of Poland reports. 19 other dead wild boars have been found in the same area, but the cause of death has not yet been determined.
Last week A dead wild boar with African swine fever was found for the first time in western Poland, about 100 kilometers from the border with Brandenburg, Germany. Now, Polish authorities have announced that another dead wild boar with the virus has been identified in that region. The cause of death in 19 other dead wild boars has yet to be determined, although it is taken into account that those boars were also infected with the animal disease. The results of that investigation are expected in a few days.
Area is cordoned off
The program area where the dead wild boars were found, is about 36 kilometers long and was already hermetically sealed on Friday 15 November. The fencing of the 'contaminated area' was completed on Monday 18 November. The area is now being inspected by the Polish Veterinary Service. Among other things, it is being investigated whether the deposition should be further expanded.
ProMED, the International Association of Infectious Diseases, said in a statement that the discovery of a second case of the animal disease is alarming for both Germany and Poland: "The massive export of pork from Poland is now at stake, as our pork has a serious threat to Germany." beside reports the agency that the virus has reportedly been circulating in the affected area for at least 1 week, but probably longer.
Fear in the Netherlands and Germany
An outbreak of African swine fever in Germany could be disastrous for the country. This is because the important markets (including China, Japan and the Philippines) will then most likely announce an import ban on pork from Germany. The discovery of a second case of African swine fever is therefore causing unrest in Germany.
The fear of an outbreak of the disease is also increasing slightly in the Netherlands. The Producers Organization Pig Farming (POV) therefore asks members and companies in the periphery (for example transporters) to strictly observe all hygiene measures. The Dutch Food and Consumer Product Safety Authority (NVWA) had already tightened up the guidelines in August. For example, a second cleaning and disinfection is mandatory for trucks with livestock from Eastern Europe.
Kimberly Baker
© DCA Market Intelligence. This market information is subject to copyright. It is not permitted to reproduce, distribute, disseminate or make the content available to third parties for compensation, in any form, without the express written permission of DCA Market Intelligence.
