Taiwan just reported its first-ever suspected cases of African Swine Fever on Wednesday. The virus is almost always fatal to swine, leading authorities to swiftly cull 195 pigs at the affected Taichung farm in central Taiwan.
The agriculture ministry is taking strict measures to isolate the virus, including thorough disinfection and establishing a control zone. There is currently a five-day ban on transporting and slaughtering pigs across Taiwan.
The country prohibits bringing in any meat or meat products – particularly pork – without inspection and quarantine. Fines for bringing in these products illegally can reach up to US$32,000.
00:00Taiwan has seen its first ever suspected cases of African swine fever on Wednesday.
00:09The disease came to light after over 100 pigs at a farm in Taichung in central Taiwan mysteriously died in mid-October.
00:30While African swine fever is highly contagious and kills most pigs it infects, it's not dangerous to humans and cannot infect people, even if they eat pork from infected pigs.
00:43Taiwan's agricultural authorities have set up an emergency response center in Taichung, and almost 200 pigs have been culled.
00:51Farms and vehicles are undergoing disinfection, and a three-kilometer control zone has been set up around the pig farm where the case was detected.
01:00The government is also pausing the transport, slaughter, and export of pigs for five days, a measure that could be extended.
01:08At home, business owners feel frustrated.
01:21Before this week, Taiwan was the only country in Asia free of the three major swine diseases, classical swine fever, foot and mouth disease, and African swine fever.
01:33But with the pending test results, this case may have serious consequences for Taiwan, as the country is hoping to boost exports of fresh and processed pork to Japan and even to the U.S.
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