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| Myanmar & Other ASF Affected Asian Nations |
#14,241
Yesterday Myanmar reported their first domestic case of African Swine Fever to the OIE - making them the 7th Asian nation (following China, Mongolia, Vietnam, Cambodia, North Korea, and Laos) to report the arrival of this porcine disease in just over a year.
The progress of the disease - and its economic impact - are fulfilling the predictions made 11 months ago by the FAO in African swine fever (ASF) threatens to spread from China to other Asian countries and FAO: African Swine Fever (ASF) `Here to Stay' In Asia.Other Asian nations are at high risk - including Thailand, Japan, and Taiwan - and while the virus doesn't directly affect humans, its impact on their food supply and livelihood can been enormous.
Despite a slow-down in reporting from China since January, and claims by their MOA that the disease is under control, many outside experts believe the situation is far more dire than has been reported (see Feedstuff's report Hog losses in China intentionally underreported).
China has `officially' reported fewer than 1.2 million pigs lost to the disease, while some estimates put that number well over 100 million (see Rabobank Research report) and by now, perhaps more than 200 million.North Korea - another country that tends to hold their cards close to their vest - reported a single outbreak in late May, but has provided no additional information in over 2 months.
By contrast - Vietnam - which has a far smaller pig production than China, has already reported 3.7 million pigs lost (about 10%) since February.Some excerpts from yesterday's OIE report follow:
We last looked at the ASF situation in Eastern and Central Europe 3 weeks ago in UK DEFRA: Updated Outbreak Assessment (#02) African Swine fever in Europe.
So far African Swine Fever has not been reported in North America, Australia, or Japan. But the illegal movement of ASF contaminated food products, animal feed, and other products from affected areas remains a constant threat.
Last May, in USDA Enhances Domestic ASF Surveillance Efforts, we looked at plans for enhanced testing and surveillance for ASF in American pigs, in hopes of detecting - and stamping out - any infections as early as possible.The USDA also recently released a 28-page ASF response plan, in the event the virus turns up on American soil.
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| How ASF Spreads |
