Brussels, 15/09/2014 (Agence Europe) - On Friday 12 September, an update of the measures to fight the spread of African Swine Fever (ASF) was approved by the experts of the member states.
These regionalised restrictions, affecting, to differing degrees, Lithuania, Latvia, Poland and Estonia, identify four levels of risks to animal health, redefine regionalisation and differentiate between these restricted zones in accordance with the level of risk.
The four levels of restrictions, in order of severity, are: 1) stringent restrictions in Sardinia, where ASF is endemic in pigs and wild boar; 2) a re-demarcation of the affected area in Lithuania and Latvia, where the disease is present in wild boar and domestic pigs, but not yet stabilised; 3) a re-demarcation of some areas in Lithuania, Latvia, Poland and Estonia, where the disease has been found mainly in wild boar; and 4) an additional zone adjacent to the zones mentioned above to prevent the further spread of the disease. Two cases of African Swine Fever were recently detected in wild boar in Estonia in zones already under restriction, adjacent to the restricted zone in Latvia where cases in wild boar and backyard pig holdings have been reported over the past few weeks. Since January 2014, 39 outbreaks of African swine fever have been identified in pigs and 87 notifications in wild boar have been made in these countries. (LC)