Asian countries warned that deadly african swine fever is ‘here to stay’

The outbreak of African Swine Fever in China, first detected last month by authorities there, is accelerating and will almost certainly emerge in other countries in Asia, a regional emergency meeting convened by the UN’s Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) heard today. 

African Swine Fever (ASF) was first detected in Asia last year, in an area of Siberia in the Russian Federation. But its arrival in China is a major threat to the swine industry and to the livelihoods of small scale farmers and others along the value chain. China produces half of the world’s pigs with a current population of some 500-million swine. In just over a month, the virus has been detected in 18 farms or abattoirs in six provinces, in some cases more than one-thousand kilometers apart. 

There is no vaccine and no cure for the disease. In its most virulent strain, it is 100 percent fatal to infected pigs. However, unlike swine flu, ASF poses no direct health threat to humans. 

Responding to outbreaks of ASF is extremely challenging, experts at the emergency meeting have explained. 

"The most likely explanation, and the reason for the vast distances the virus has traveled, is through processed or raw pork products and less likely through the movement of live animals," said Juan Lubroth, FAO’s Chief Veterinary Officer. "The virus is very robust and can survive for weeks or months when it is used in cured or salted pork or when it is used in animal feed or swill."