China Christian Daily

The number of outbreaks of African swine fever (ASF) reported in China has continued to increase, reaching 74. The first outbreak of the virus in wild boar was confirmed last week.

The discovery of the ASF virus in the dead boar is not a surprise, but it confirms the weight of the problem that it is a being in China.

Since the APP entered China's wild boar basin, it has become more likely that the virus will become endemic because it is difficult to eradicate from a wild boar population in a country as vast as the China.

African swine flu in China

The first case was reported by the Chinese Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs (MARA) on November 16, 2018 in a wild boar in Baishan, Jilin Province, in the north-east of the country. The outbreak has not yet been confirmed by the World Organization for Animal Health (OIE).

In addition, the last two provinces affected by the virus are Shanghai and Sichuan. Shanghai is the largest city in China by its population (over 24 million inhabitants) and Sichuan is China's largest piggy state.

Meanwhile, in Shanghai, the virus was discovered on a farm of 314 pigs, while in Sichuan, 2 cases were reported. One of them occurred near Chengdu City on a 110 hog farm; the other on a farm near the border with Yunnan Province. This farm had 40 pigs.

In total, at least 74 outbreaks were reported in 19 provinces in China. The official number of victims of infections or slaughter stands at nearly 140,000 pigs. According to the Reuters news agency, the Chinese authorities have announced "harsh measures" to fight the virus, with severe penalties for behavior resulting in a delay or camouflage of reported outbreaks.

The rumor

According to rumors, last week, traces of the virus were found in foods made in China. This turned out to be incorrect, Reuters wrote. The Chinese company Tangrenshen, which initially reported its suspicions in this direction, later confirmed that no trace of the virus had been found in its animal feed products.