Risk of spreading African swine fever from using "garbage water"

Raising pigs by utilizing leftover food is quite popular nowadays. Photo: Viet Hung

Being an area adjacent to Vinh city, most people in Hung Tay commune (Hung Nguyen) raise pigs with leftover food from restaurants (also known as "garbage water"). Using leftover food to raise pigs is quite popular, especially for small-scale households (from a few to a few dozen pigs), it not only saves money but also makes the meat easy to consume.

According to Mr. NV H, a pig farmer in Hung Tay commune, the meat quality of pigs raised in this way is better, and is favored by consumers because they are "clean", only eat leftovers, and do not use growth-promoting feed". Mr. H.'s family raises 30 pigs, and on average, he buys about 10 buckets of garbage water (20 liters) every day from restaurants at a price of 5,000 - 10,000 VND/bucket.

Raising pigs with garbage water is less costly, but currently there is a risk of spreading disease. Photo: Thanh Phuc

For decades, Mr. Nguyen Duc T.'s household in Quynh Giang Commune (Quynh Luu) has been raising pigs by using leftover food from other households in the commune and shops in the district. He always maintains about 5-6 sows and 70 pigs, and on average, he collects 35 buckets of garbage water every day to feed the pigs.

Mr. Tam said: "Raising pigs in this way requires low investment costs. Pigs grow slowly and can only be sold after 3-4 months, but there is no fear of loss. On average, each year the family earns hundreds of millions of dong in profit."

Ms. Ba Thi Dung - Deputy Head of the Department of Agriculture of Hung Nguyen district said: "Most small-scale livestock households use leftover food from shops to raise pigs, which poses a high risk of disease. In the current situation of African swine fever outbreak, we focus on propaganda so that people are more careful in choosing food for pigs; thoroughly educate households that when leftover food is brought home, it must be heat-treated (boiled) before feeding pigs."

During an outbreak, in addition to cleaning the barns, choosing the right food source is also very important. Photo: Thanh Phuc

However, according to veterinary experts, leftover food carries a high risk of spreading disease in pigs because the origin of food in restaurants and small eateries is not strictly controlled.

On the other hand, leftover food that has been left to spoil from day to day can contain the pathogen of swine fever. Transporting leftover food from many different stores also increases the risk of infection in pigs. Therefore, the use of leftover food to raise pigs should be considered, especially when swine fever is currently breaking out. In addition, small-scale farmers need to strictly follow biosafety procedures, vaccinate pigs against disease on schedule, and feed pigs with adequate nutrients...

According to the World Organization for Animal Health, the use of untreated leftover food accounts for 60% of the spread and infection of African swine fever. Therefore, the "5 no's" recommendation includes: Do not hide the epidemic, do not buy, sell, or transport dead and sick animals; do not slaughter or consume the meat of dead and sick animals; do not throw dead animals into the environment, and do not use leftover food without heat treatment. In particular, it is important to strictly control the source of untreated leftover food.