Tuesday, March 19, 2024

Nation put on pig fever alert

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The World Organisation for Animal Health has declared the deadly pig disease African swine fever a global pandemic.
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That is an international major event putting New Zealand’s $750 million commercial pork industry at risk, NZ Pork general manager David Baines said.

“It’s concerning. It isn’t going away. In fact, it’s got bigger,” Baines said.

NZ Pork, the Ministry for Primary Industries and AsureQuality have embarked on a nationwide education campaign to warn people keeping domestic pigs or coming into contact with feral pigs of the risks of the disease.

“The industry is taking the threat of the disease extremely seriously.

“Watching the disease spread through Europe and Asia demonstrates how devastating it could be if it reached NZ,” Baines said.

Though the disease has no effect on human health the only response is to cull infected herds, which could wipe out the entire local industry. 

“That’s why we are doing everything we can to raise awareness about the risks.”

There is no effective treatment or vaccine.

While there have been no detections of the it in NZ, about 60% of pork consumed in NZ is imported from more than 25 countries including China, Poland and Belgium that are identified as having the fever.

The virus is exceptionally hardy and can survive almost indefinitely in frozen meat. 

It can also be carried on clothing, footwear, equipment and vehicles.

The information campaign provides details about the global spread of ASF as well as precautions farmers with pigs need to take to prevent the disease reaching NZ and spreading. 

It’s estimated pigs are kept on at least 5500 properties outside the commercial industry with an unknown number of animals.

“One of the things we’re really emphasising is the importance of not feeding untreated meat scraps to pigs,” Baines said.

“The major risk to our industry is that African swine fever gets into the lifestyle or para-commercial pig population through the feeding of untreated food scraps and from there into our commercial herd.”

In NZ it is illegal to feed meat to pigs unless it has been cooked at 100 degrees, essentially boiled, for one hour.

“This is a key biosecurity measure as African swine fever is a very hardy virus and can survive in pork products that might not have been cooked thoroughly as well as various types of processed pork products. 

“It can infect the pigs that eat them.”

A recent study of infection in China showed feeding meat scraps, a common practice in the country that produces almost half the world’s pigs, accounted for 38% of new infections.

Baines said industry is working with MPI but needs to get more information to be confident the best possible biosecurity measures are in place.

“We understand there is a balancing act between biosecurity risk and trade implications but our focus is on protecting the supply of fresh, born and raised in NZ pork.”

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