Manila, Dec 8 (IANS) The Philippines has imposed a temporary ban on all pig and pork imports from Spain following a confirmed African Swine Fever (ASF) outbreak in the European country, the country’s Department of Agriculture said.

Agriculture Secretary Francisco Tiu Laurel said the import freeze, which covers live pigs, pork meat, skin, and semen used for artificial insemination, will not tighten supply or trigger a price spike during the Christmas season.

“Cold storage is full,” Tiu Laurel told reporters, stressing that inventories remain more than sufficient to meet the expected surge in holiday demand.

The agency issued the ban after Spain’s veterinary authorities reported to the World Organisation for Animal Health on November 28 that ASF cases had been detected among wild pigs in Sabadell, Valles Occidental in Barcelona.

Tiu Laurel said the moratorium is necessary to prevent the entry of the ASF virus and protect both domestic and wild pig populations.

All sanitary and phytosanitary permits for hog shipments from Spain have been automatically revoked to safeguard food security and public health, he added.

Under the directive, only frozen pork products produced on or before November 11 and loaded, in transit, or accepted at port on or before December 4 may enter the Philippines. Shipments produced after November 11 will be returned to Spain, Xinhua news agency reported.

ASF is a highly contagious viral disease of domestic and wild pigs, whose mortality rate can reach 100 per cent.

It is not a danger to human health, but it has devastating effects on pig populations and the farming economy.

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.

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 per cent of the global meat intake. 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.

–IANS

int/jk/