On Monday 18 September, the European Commissioner for Health, Stella Kyriakides, expressed concern about the development of African swine fever, which has appeared in Sweden and Croatia in recent days.
“We have seen how this devastating disease has affected domestic pigs and wild boar in Member States that were not previously affected, such as Sweden and Croatia”, the Commissioner said at the meeting of European agriculture ministers in Brussels.
At the same time, the disease has resurfaced in some Member States where it had been successfully contained for several years, the Commissioner noted. 14 Member States are affected by cases of African swine fever, and this development is “extremely worrying”, according to the Commissioner.
Stella Kyriakides welcomed the measures taken by Sweden, who explained that, among other measures, a 1,000 km² restriction zone has been put in place to prevent the spread of African swine fever. “I will continue to do everything in my power to ensure that the EU’s regionalisation measures are understood and accepted by our trading partners”, she added. Italy insisted on the need for a vaccine against this animal disease. France reiterated the importance of strengthening cooperation between countries. (Original version in French by Lionel Changeur)