China officials confirmed a new case of African Swine Fever (ASF) in southern Hunan province, following reports of two new cases over the weekend in the nearby Chongqing municipality, a media report said.
The latest outbreak on a small farm in Baojing County is the 50th case since ASF was first detected in early August, according to a report from
Reuters. ASF — which is highly contagious and for which there is no vaccine — has now affected hog farms in 14 provinces. It also has led to a series of
small-volume culling and transport limits in an effort to stem the spread of the disease.
The source of the spread has not been identified so far, but a Chinese analyst believes the likely source involves feed product contamination, the report added. Beyond the transport limits, China’s agriculture ministry also has banned the feeding of kitchen waste to pigs and is more closely monitoring slaughterhouse practices to block the processing of sick pigs.
ASF concerns also are on the radar of officials at the U.S. Meat Export Federation (USMEF), who are monitoring the spread of the disease and its potential impact on the world’s largest pork producer. In a phone conference Monday, USMEF President and CEO Dan Halstrom said the reports of new ASF outbreaks are notable. He added that his organization remains committed to work with U.S. trade officials to remove the retaliatory 20-percent tariffs China imposed earlier this year on U.S. agricultural products — including pork — as a near-term goal for USMEF.
Source : Meatingplace