Germany: African swine fever infection found in new area
On June 14th, the German authorities confirmed an African swine fever infection. African swine fever (ASF) is a notifiable disease caused by the ASF virus, which can cause serious illness in pigs. Last weekend, an ASF-infected dead wild boar was found approximately 150 km from the Dutch border, close to the municipality of Kirchhundem (state of North Rhine-Westphalia).
Last year, ASF was already detected in Germany around Mannheim (state of Baden-Württemberg). This is approximately 200 km south of where the infected carcass was found last weekend. It is not yet clear how the ASF virus was introduced into the new area and whether there is a connection with the infections in the area around Mannheim, where ASF has been present in wild boars for some time.
The NVWA has investigated whether there have been risky pig transports from the vicinity of Kirchhundem to the Netherlands. They found that there had been no direct transports of pigs from that area to the Netherlands since May 1st.
Stay alert and hygiene measures
It is important to report wild boars with abnormal behaviour and wild boars found dead to the local land management organisation, the local big game coordinators, or if they are not known, to the NVWA (National reporting point for animal diseases: 045 – 546 31 88).
When ASF occurs in an area, it is important to take hygiene measures into account to prevent the spread of the virus to new areas. This includes properly cleaning and disinfecting vehicles, dirty boots, and any other materials. The virus can also be spread by, for example, throwing away a contaminated pork product in nature (see figure for the different possible routes).
More information about these, and possible future infections, can be found on the website of the WOAH (World Organisation for Animal Health). Click here for more information about the disease.
