With the recent confirmation of a new outbreak of African swine fever (ASF) on a farm in Gauteng, pig farmers in Mzansi have been fearing the worst. Dr Thandi Chiappero of the South African Pork Producers Organisation’s (Sappo) consumer assurance unit explains everything farmers need to know to keep their pigs safe.
Pigs that have ASF have a virus that is extremely contagious. The main methods of transmission include direct contact between pigs or the distribution of manure or fragments of diseased tissue by people or other animals, Chiappero explains.
“It can also spread in improperly cooked pork products fed to pigs, such as kitchen waste (swill) obtained from restaurants and fed to pigs. ASF has high mortality rate,s often resulting in the death of the entire pig farm. This results in huge economic losses for affected farmers,” she says.
Irresponsible behaviour
She further notes that it is irresponsible for farmers to allow their pigs to roam around freely. Pigs can pick up the disease from anywhere, and it makes it difficult to track the source when it is unknown.
“Movement and sale of any sick pigs, or pigs that have been in contact with sick pigs, are irresponsible. Inspecting your neighbour’s sick pigs and then taking that same clothing or those same shoes onto your own pig farm is a very high risk. Buying pig feed from an unverified source is irresponsible, and allowing pigs to roam free in general is irresponsible.”
Chiappero says the biggest environmental challenge is the disposal of pig carcasses in the case of an African Swine Fever outbreak. This should only be done with approval from the department of environmental affairs in the case of a large number of carcasses.
“Safe disposal of any carcasses is important to reduce the risk of spread and to reduce the risk of contamination of ground or water. The virus can persist in carcasses for months.”
In this episode, Chiappero also discusses:
- How the disease spreads;
- Signs of ASF to look out for; and
- Ways to mitigate disease.
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