Vietnam mulls measures to curb African swine fever

HANOI, March 14 (Xinhua) -- The Vietnamese agriculture minister on Thursday proposed burbing the African swine fever (ASF) in small-scale households, cleaning the breeding facilities and strictly managing the transport of pigs.

Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development Nguyen Xuan Cuong made the suggestion when chairing a meeting to discuss solutions to prevent further outbreaks of the ASF, which is developing and likely to spread wildly, Vietnam News Agency reported.

ASF has occurred in 17 cities and provinces in the north and so if not controlled well, it could spread to the south and become more dangerous as the region is home to key livestock localities such as Dong Nai province and Ho Chi Minh City.

Therefore, it is necessary to strictly control the transport of pigs on roads to the south, the minister stressed.

Director of the Department of Animal Health Pham Van Dong said as of March 14, the ASF was reported in 221 communes in 52 districts of 17 cities and provinces.

The total count of culled pigs was 23,422, he said, adding that most of the ASF outbreaks were found at small-scale households.

ASF has affected 21 countries so far, and there is no approved vaccine against the disease, according to the World Organization for Animal Health.

ASF is a severe viral disease affecting domestic and wild pigs which can be spread by live or dead pig and pork products, the organization said, noting that the ASF virus is harmless to humans, but causes hemorrhagic fever in pigs and wild boars that is almost fatal.