A case of African swine fever has been detected at a Hong Kong slaughterhouse, prompting the culling of all 6,000 pigs at the facility.
Hong Kong Secretary for Food and Health Sophia Chan (陳肇始) said in a statement on Friday that the incurable virus was found in a single pig imported from a farm in Guangdong Province in mainland China, where the months-long outbreak has devastated herds.
Pork is China’s staple meat, and its price and availability is considered a matter of national concern. Shortfalls in supply have increased demand for pork from producers in the US, with whom China is in a trade dispute.
Photo: Reuters
The culling was necessary so that “thorough cleansing and also disinfection could be conducted,” Chan said.
Operations at the Sheung Shui Slaughterhouse would be suspended until the disinfection work is completed, she said.
“We will enhance the surveillance and also testing of pigs, and currently we collect samples from pigs with ASF symptoms for testing, and in the future we will step up the sampling of other pigs for testing,” Chan said, using an acronym for the disease.
The territory’s supply of fresh pork would be reduced in the near future, but there would still be a limited supply of live pigs available from another slaughterhouse, she said.
Unlike swine flu, African swine fever cannot be transmitted to humans.
Well-cooked pork is safe for consumption, Chan said.
Concerns about the spread of African swine fever to the US has led organizers to cancel the World Pork Expo scheduled for next month in Iowa.
Denmark has begun erecting a 70km fence along the German border to keep out wild boars in an attempt to prevent the spread of African swine fever, which could jeopardize the nation’s valuable pork industry.
Russia has also been hit hard by the disease and some have speculated that the Chinese outbreak might have originated among pigs from that country.
FOUR DESIGNATED AREAS: Notices were issued for live-fire exercises in waters south and northwest of Penghu, northeast of Keelung and west of Kaohsiung, they said The military is planning three major annual exercises across the army, navy and air force this month, with the navy’s “Hai Chiang” (海強, “Sea Strong”) drills running from today through Friday, the Ministry of National Defense said yesterday. The Hai Chiang exercise, which is to take place in waters surrounding Taiwan, would feature P-3C Orion maritime patrol aircraft and S-70C anti-submarine helicopters, the ministry said, adding that the drills aim to bolster the nation’s offshore defensive capabilities. China has intensified military and psychological pressure against Taiwan, repeatedly sending warplanes and vessels into areas near the nation’s air defense identification zone and across
FORCED LABOR: A US court listed three Taiwanese and nine firms based in Taiwan in its indictment, with eight of the companies registered at the same address Nine companies registered in Taiwan, as well as three Taiwanese, on Tuesday were named by the US Department of the Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) as Specially Designated Nationals (SDNs) as a result of a US federal court indictment. The indictment unsealed at the federal court in Brooklyn, New York, said that Chen Zhi (陳志), a dual Cambodian-British national, is being indicted for fraud conspiracy, money laundering and overseeing Prince Holding Group’s forced-labor scam camps in Cambodia. At its peak, the company allegedly made US$30 million per day, court documents showed. The US government has seized Chen’s noncustodial wallet, which contains
SUPPLY CHAIN: Taiwan’s advantages in the drone industry include rapid production capacity that is independent of Chinese-made parts, the economic ministry said The Executive Yuan yesterday approved plans to invest NT$44.2 billion (US$1.44 billion) into domestic production of uncrewed aerial vehicles over the next six years, bringing Taiwan’s output value to more than NT$40 billion by 2030 and making the nation Asia’s democratic hub for the drone supply chain. The proposed budget has NT$33.8 billion in new allocations and NT$10.43 billion in existing funds, the Ministry of Economic Affairs said. Under the new development program, the public sector would purchase nearly 100,000 drones, of which 50,898 would be for civil and government use, while 48,750 would be for national defense, it said. The Ministry of
SENATE RECOMMENDATION: The National Defense Authorization Act encourages the US secretary of defense to invite Taiwan’s navy to participate in the exercises in Hawaii The US Senate on Thursday last week passed the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) for Fiscal Year 2026, which strongly encourages the US secretary of defense to invite Taiwan’s naval forces to participate in the Rim of the Pacific (RIMPAC) exercise, as well as allocating military aid of US$1 billion for Taiwan. The bill, which authorizes appropriations for the military activities of the US Department of Defense, military construction and other purposes, passed with 77 votes in support and 20 against. While the NDAA authorizes about US$925 billion of defense spending, the Central News Agency yesterday reported that an aide of US
RSS