On September 9, 2020, the first suspected case of a wild boar was confirmed. Today, domestic pigs are also infected with African swine fever in Germany.
One year after the first appearance of African swine fever in Germany (ASF), the fight against the virus epidemic continues.
“The outbreak is still dynamic and the pressure of infection from Poland remains high,” said the parliamentary state secretary in the Ministry of Agriculture, Uwe Feiler, in Berlin.
Currently, 2070 affected wild boars are recorded in Germany, 1622 of them in Brandenburg and 448 in Saxony. In Brandenburg, swine fever was also detected in two small herds and in an organic farm with 200 pigs in domestic pigs.
The first suspected case was confirmed on September 9, 2020 a few kilometers from the German-Polish border in Brandenburg.
The previous measures could have kept the swine fever “in very limited areas in Brandenburg and Saxony,” said Feiler. With the exception of the three farms within the established restricted zones, the domestic pig herds have so far been free of the infection.
Coordination with Poland remains a challenge in the fight. The President of the Friedrich-Löffler-Institut, Professor Thomas Mettenleiter, pointed to a “large-scale infection pressure from the east” which is not comparable to “punctiform entries in the Czech Republic and Belgium”. “The fight against ASF in Germany will not be a sprint, but a long-distance run.”
State Secretary Feiler also named the negative impact on the meat industry. Meat export to many third countries has not been possible since the epidemic. In the meantime, however, it has started up again with countries such as Canada, Singapore and Vietnam. “Intensive talks” are also being held with China.
For next Wednesday, Agriculture Minister Julia Klöckner (CDU) has invited meat industry companies to a discussion on the situation on the pig market. According to the information, the marketing of healthy pigs from the affected areas will play an important role.
Jane Stock is a technology author, who has written for 24 Hours World. She writes about the latest in technology news and trends, and is always on the lookout for new and innovative ways to improve his audience’s experience.
