African swine fever (ASF) is a highly contagious viral disease of domestic and wild

pigs, whose mortality rate can reach 100%.

It is not a danger to human health, but it has devastating effects on pig populations
and the farming economy. There is currently no effective vaccine against ASF.

The virus is highly resistant in the environment, meaning that it can survive on clothes,
boots, wheels, and other materials. It can also survive in various pork products, such as
ham, sausages or bacon. Therefore, human behaviours can play an important role in
spreading this pig disease across borders if adequate measures are not taken

African swine fever: a socio-economic burden and a

threat to food security and biodiversity
Pigs are a primary source of household income in many countries. The spread of ASF
across the world has devastated family-run pig farms, often the mainstay of people’s
livelihoods and a driver of upward mobility. It has also reduced opportunities to access
healthcare and education.

Moreover, pork meat is one of the primary sources of animal proteins, accounting for
more than 35% of the global meat intake1. Hence, this disease poses a serious problem
for food security worldwide.

This disease is also a concern for biodiversity and the balance of ecosystems, as
it affects not only domestic farmed pigs, but also wild boars, including native breeds.

African Swine Fever (ASF) is a highly contagious viral disease of pigs. In its acute form
the disease generally results in high mortality. ASF is a different disease to swine flu.
The virus does not affect people and there is no impact on human health.

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Current Situation (January 2022)

The risk of an ASF incursion continues to exist as the virus is still spreading
across Europe with a recent wild boar occurrence detected in Italy. This is the
first reported case of ASF in mainland Italy. The disease has also been
detected for the first time in North Macedonia in a backyard holding close to
the Bulgarian border.

Four cases of ASF have now been detected in domestic Pigs in Germany
since the first domestic case was reported in July 2021. Elsewhere frequent
outbreaks in domestic pigs are still being reported in Moldova, Romania,
Russia and Ukraine. ASF has also continued to be reported in wild boar
across Europe.

The disease is also present in several countries in Eastern Europe and also in
Asia where it has been found in China, Hong Kong, Mongolia , Vietnam and
North Korea. In affected areas the disease has been confirmed in wild boar,
as well as on farms, smallholdings and in pet pigs.

Clinical signs
The clinical signs of ASF may occur in chronic, sub-acute or acute form. The
incubation period for ASF is variable but is usually between five and fifteen
days.

In the acute form pigs develop a high temperature (40.5 degrees C or 105
degrees F), then become dull and go off their food. Other symptoms can vary
but will include some or all of the following:

 vomiting
 diarrhoea (sometimes bloody)
 reddening or darkening of the skin, particularly ears and snout
 gummed up eyes
 laboured breathing and coughing
 abortion, still births and weak litters
 weakness and unwillingness to stand

The clinical signs of ASF are indistinguishable to those for Classical Swine
Fever and also similar to other pig diseases such as Porcine Dermatitis and
Neopathy Syndrome.

Where is this disease found?

Traditionally this serious disease has occured mainly in Africa with the only
endemic area in the European Union (EU) being the Italian island of Sardinia.
However in 2017 the disease has also been reported in Central and Eastern
Europe (Romania and the Czech Republic).

What is the public health risk associated with this disease?

African Swine Fever is not a human health threat.

How is the disease transmitted?

African Swine Fever can be spread through:

 direct contact with infected pigs, faeces or body fluids

 indirect contact via fomites such as equipment, vehicles or people who
work with pigs between pig farms with ineffective biosecurity
 pigs eating infected pig meat or meat products
 biological vectors - ticks of the speciesOrnithodoros. However, ASF-
competent ticks are not present in the UK

Prevention
Good biosecurity is essential to the prevention of introduction of ASF into
Northern Ireland.

Biosecurity measures that farmers can take

 maintain strict biosecurity

o only allow essential visitors to enter your farm, and insist that they
wear clean or disposible clothing and footwear, and wash their
hands (or shower in if possible)
o only allow vehicles and equipment on to the farm if they have
been cleaned and disinfected beforehand
 do not allow people who may have been in contact with other pigs on to
your farm
 do not allow staff and visitors to bring pork products on to the farm
 do not allow catering waste / scraps to be fed to pigs - dispose of it
safely
 only source pigs and semen of known health status

The feeding of any food waste of animal origin or food waste which has been
in contact with products of animal origin, whether raw or cooked, is illegal in
the UK.
If you keep pigs, you have an important role in preventing further disease
outbreaks, it is essential that pig holders maintain effective biosecurity all year
round.

The above biosecurity measures are covered in our one page leaflet – print
this and keep it handy, or put a copy on your noticeboard:’