 |
| Credit BAPHIQ |
#13,945
On February 15th of this year, Taiwan announced the first ASF-positive results from a Vietnamese food item, which was confiscated at their international airport. Four days later Vietnam announcedtheir First (3) Outbreaks Of African Swine Fever, in two provinces (Thái Bình and Hưng Yên).
In the roughly 30 days since that announcement, Vietnam has reported hundreds of outbreaks in small holdings across 18 northern provinces.Taiwan, which as already intercepted 33 Chinese made food items with the ASF virus being brought in by travelers, today announced their second detection of a ASF-positive food item from Vietnam.
While ASF doesn't pose a direct threat to human health, its continued spread in Asia and Eastern Europe poses an existential threat to their pork industry, as the virus is often 100% fatal in pigs, and no vaccine is currently available.
This (translated) report from Taiwan's BAPHIQ (Bureau of Animal Plant Health Inspection & Quarantine).
Continued monitoring at the border, the second case of African swine fever virus gene was detected from Vietnamese passengers carrying pork products
The Central Hunger Disaster Response Center of the African Hog Chore said today (2) that after the first detection of the African swine fever virus gene from a Vietnamese passenger carrying a pork sandwich on February 15, 2008, the second case was again tested in Vietnamese pork products. The swine fever virus gene indicates that passengers carry pork products from mainland China or Vietnam, and the risk of spreading African swine fever is extremely high.
The Strain Center said that since there were many cases of illegal entry of meat from Vietnamese passengers, the Anti-inspection Bureau began sampling the pork products illegally carried or abandoned by Vietnamese passengers from November, 107, and sent the animal husbandry to detect the African swine fever virus.
A total of 84 tests have been conducted so far, of which 2 are positive, one in February this year (positive rate 3.7%) and one in March (positive rate 7.7%). The strain center added that the second case was sampled from the Tainan Quarantine Station of the Kaohsiung Branch of the Anti-insurance Bureau at the Tainan Quarantine Station of the Anti-inspection Bureau on March 8 from the Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam, and the pork ham discarded by the passengers at the Tainan Airport. The sample was confirmed by the Natse and the sequence was confirmed. The similarity with the genetic fragments of Chinese swine fever virus strains in China and Vietnam is 100%.
The Strain Center concluded that Vietnam has informed the World Organisation for Animal Health that there have been 207 cases of African swine fever in 19 provinces since February 20, indicating that the epidemic continues to spread.
The Strain Center appealed that Vietnam and other countries with African swine fever in the past three years have entered Taiwan without carrying meat products. If the pork products are illegally seized, the first time they will be fined NT$200,000, the second The penalty was 1 million yuan, and the foreigner was fined 200,000 yuan. The unpaid person refused to enter the country. The punishment was quite heavy. The public should never try the law.Although the numbers are relatively small, the ASF-positive rate among confiscated and tested pork products from both Vietnam and China continue to run in the 5%-10% range, suggesting the virus has made it into a substantial portion of their commercial food supply.
