New African swine fever hotbeds
Pig farmers in Romania who have been affected by the African swine fever outbreak have received 50,000 Euros worth of damages so far
Daniela Budu, 21.08.2018, 12:49
The number of swine fever hotbeds stands close to 700 and they have been identified in approximately 150 small towns and villages, most of them in north-western and south-eastern Romania, the latest data released by the National Sanitary Veterinary and Food Safety Authority show. The most affected county is Tulcea, in the south-east, where hundreds of active swine fever hotbeds have been spotted in households and several pig farms. Tens of thousands of pigs have been slaughtered so far. The authorities are also on the alert in Giurgiu County, in the south-east, where they are taking action to contain the spread of the virus. To this aim, traffic control operations have been increased in an effort to identify illegal transports of animals and pork products, on the one hand, and the activity of all markets selling pigs or pork meat has been brought to a halt across the county, on the other.
New swine fever hotbeds have recently been identified in localities across Constanta County, in the south-east, where the Local Swine Fever Fighting Centre has also decided that all infested pigs should be slaughtered. The African swine fever virus is spreading towards the capital city, being found in pigs in a household close to Ilfov County, in the south-east. The sanitary-veterinary authorities have given assurances they have taken the appropriate measures to isolate the hotbed.
Meanwhile, in order to contain the spread of the swine fever virus, the authorities will allow the hunting of wild-boars and jackals in the Danube Delta, which carry the virus. The governor of the Danube Delta, Mălin Muşetescu, believes however the killing of wild animals will not solve the problem. He told radio Romania that the mortality rate has decreased, but the virus can still be active, even for a couple of years. Mălin Muşetescu:
“We are speaking about a virus which lives both in the soil and in water. It is very difficult. It can disappear in 5 or 25 years. I hope to be able to keep the situation in the Danube Delta in check. And I dare say an encouraging thing is the fact that the mortality rate among wild boars has decreased, as compared to the initial situation.”
The emergence of new hotbeds is disquieting, especially in the pig farms where bio-security measures have already been taken, says state secretary with the Agriculture Ministry, Daniel Botănoiu:
“New hotbeds emerge in the farms where bio-security measures have been enforced and this is why we should come up with a formula and learn from our past experiences, to prevent the emergence of new hotbeds in other farms.”
The official has also underlined that in order to prevent the spread of the swine fever virus, the population should no longer transport animals and the pigs in households should be slaughtered only after owners get a sanitary-veterinary approval. It is worth mentioning however that, despite its fast spreading, the swine fever does not pose a threat to the populations food safety.
(Translated by D. Vijeu)
