#14,071
Taiwan sits between 60 and 90 miles off the Chinese mainland, but the ROC also exercises political control over several groups of (many uninhabited) islands (Kinmen, Wuqiu & Matsu) that lie much closer to the mainland (see map above).
Last December and January we saw several reports of dead, ASF positive pigs (see ASF: When Pigs Float) turning up on the beaches of some of these islands, presumably dumped into rivers by farmers on the mainland.In mid-March (see Taiwan: Another ASF Positive Pig Washes Ashore), this scene was repeated when an infected pig was found floated ashore on the southwestern side of Liyu Township (Xiaojinmen) in Jinmen County.
And most recently, in early April (see Taiwan: 3rd Report In Three Days Of An ASF Infected Pig Washing Ashore), resulting in a full hazmat response (see photo below) and surveys of local pig farms looking for signs of spread. So far no local farms have been affected.
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| Photo Credit BAPHIQ |
Despite a marked slowdown in official reporting from Mainland officials since December, we continue to see evidence of ongoing transmission of the virus, and its devastating effect on China's pork industry (see African Swine Fever In China: Epizootic or An EpicZootic?).
Officially, China has only reported the loss of just over a million pigs, but some some organizations - like the FAO's Food Outlook Report - estimate China's losses close to 20%; roughly 80 to 100 million pigs.
A month ago, a Rabobank Research report estimated that between 150-200 million Chinese pigs have already been infected with ASF - more than all the pigs in Europe - and that China's pig production will drop 30% in 2019.
We've seen other estimates (see ASF China: Global agribusiness suffers; estimates vary) proposing even greater losses.Today Taiwan's BAPHIQ is reporting that another ASF-positive pig carcass (or perhaps, carcasses) has been retrieved from Lianyu Township on Kinmen Island (aka Jinmen), which is located about 6km off the Chinese Mainland near the mouth of the Jiulong River.
Chinese mainland sea drifting Golden Gate pigs, detected African porcine virus nucleic acid positive
The Central Disaster Relief Center (Strain Center) of the African Hog Chops said today (17) that on the 14th, the island of Lianyu Township (Xiaojinmen) in Jinmen County found the viscera and pigskin of the pigs drifting ashore, and the animal and plant epidemic prevention in Jinmen County. The sample was sent to the Animal Husbandry Health Laboratory of the Council of Agriculture (the Animal Husbandry Institute) for testing. The nucleic acid of the African swine fever virus was detected positively today, and the gene fragment was 100% similar to the isolate strain from mainland China. There are no pigs on the bold island.
Due to the location of the Jiulong River estuary, the pig remains should be drifted from mainland China.
According to the Strain Center, the Jinmen County Animal and Plant Epidemic Prevention Station received a report from the ninth shore patrol team of the Golden Horse Department on the 14th. The pig's internal organs and pigskins were found on the shore of the bold island in Liyu Township. The team immediately rushed to the scene to understand, after collecting the relevant samples, the pigs were burned and buried on the spot, and the samples were sent to the animal husbandry for inspection. The related samples were detected by polymerase chain reaction (PCR), and the results of the detection of African swine fever virus nucleic acid were positive. The gene fragment sequence was 100% similar to the gene fragment of the Chinese swine fever virus strain in mainland China.
The strain center added that according to the return of the Jinmen County Animal and Plant Epidemic Prevention Institute, there was no abnormal death in the pigs in the county. The veterinarians of the public offices continued to pay close attention to the dynamics of the farms within the jurisdiction. In response to this case, the Jinmen County Government has implemented disinfection measures for the personnel, vehicles and equipment that are in contact with the pig's remains. There are no pigs on the bold island, and no pig farms are found within a radius of 5 km around the site. Safety, the Jinmen County Government has conducted a comprehensive visit to 8 pig farms in the island of Liyu Township. No abnormalities have been found. The pig farm visits and biosafety counselling will continue to be strengthened to prevent the occurrence and spread of the epidemic.
The disposal of tens of millions of pigs is obviously a major logistical problem, and Chinese social media and the dissident press are fill with reports of the dumping of pig carcasses into lakes and streams, or sometimes just piled up along roadways (Google or Twitter search for `死猪').
In the past we've seen China's farmers resort to `midnight dumping' of sick or dead pigs and poultry, rather than reporting the incident to the appropriate authorities, which might invite unwanted scrutiny and the likely culling of all of their livestock (see Shanghai Govt.: Thousands Of Dead Pigs Retrieved From River and Hong Kong: Another H5N6 Positive Chicken Carcass).While China hasn't reported an outbreak of African Swine Fever in nearly month, that may have more to do with their sensitive trade negotiations with the United States, rather than the situation on the ground.
Stay tuned.
