Nghe An: Dozens of pig farms have their herds wiped out due to African swine fever.
(Baonghean.vn) - By the end of September, 10 pig farms in Nghe An province, each with over 100 pigs, had to cull their pigs due to African swine fever.
The disease attacks the farm.
African swine fever is spreading not only to small-scale pig farmers but also to large-scale farms with herds of pigs, despite the farm owners having implemented disease prevention measures.
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| Pigs infected with the disease are being culled in Vinh City. Photo: Quang An |
Most recently, on September 28th, 115 pigs at the pig farm of Mr. Hoang Dinh Oanh's family in Nghi Lam commune (Nghi Loc district) were infected with African swine fever, forcing authorities and local government to cull them, totaling over 10.3 tons of live pigs.
Mr. Oanh said that his family was aware of the disease situation in the province and had implemented several preventative measures, such as proactively purchasing disinfectants and lime powder to spray and sprinkle inside and outside the pig pens. Family members also limited their time outside. However, the disease still infected their pig herd.
Mr. Nguyen Tuan Que's family pig farm in Van Thanh commune (Yen Thanh district) had a herd of 251 pigs, weighing over 11 tons, which were culled on September 12th. Mr. Que believes that the disease infection in his family's pig herd may have been caused by three factors.
Firstly, the family used water from the irrigation canal to feed the pigs and clean the pigpens, so the disease spread through the water; secondly, the disease may have spread through the air, as many households in the village have pigs infected with the disease; thirdly, it may have been transmitted through industrial feed.
Earlier, Mr. Que had proactively purchased 2 tons of lime powder and 20 liters of chemicals to spray and disinfect the area in front of the gate and around the livestock pens.
Identify the causes
According to information from the Department of Animal Husbandry and Veterinary Medicine, African swine fever initially occurred mainly in small-scale farming households, but from the beginning of September until now, the disease has strongly affected large-scale farms.
As of September 29th, 10 pig farms with a scale of 100 pigs or more in Nghe An province have been infected with African swine fever in the districts of Yen Thanh, Dien Chau, Quynh Luu, Quy Chau, Nghi Loc, and Do Luong.
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| Environmental cleanup at Mr. Nguyen Canh Nam's pig farm in Hoa Son commune (Do Luong district) after pig culling. Photo by Xuan Hoang. |
According to Mr. Cao Viet Duong, Head of the Disease Management Department (Department of Animal Husbandry and Veterinary Medicine), although farm owners have implemented many disease prevention measures, the disease still attacks pig farms due to several reasons: allowing traders to enter the farms to buy pigs; using river water to clean the barns; or spreading from industrial feed, especially from the recycled feed of a pig farm that is infected and then returned to the distributor for consumption.
Therefore, to effectively prevent disease outbreaks, farm owners should avoid using water from rivers and canals to clean pigpens or feed pigs; disinfect industrial feed bags before storing them; and disinfect vehicles used to transport pigs when selling them. Disinfection measures should also be implemented for those directly involved in handling the pigs in the pens.
As of September 29th, 195 communes in Nghe An province still have active outbreaks that have not yet passed the 30-day mark. 44,746 pigs have been culled, weighing 2,085,970 kg. Two districts, Nghia Dan and Cua Lo town, remain free of outbreaks.