The battle over African Swine Fever (ASF) appears far from over after another country reported cases of the virus, this time in the North American hemisphere. It marks the first time ASF has been detected in the Western hemisphere in approximately 40 years.
On Wednesday, USDA confirmed ASF was confirmed in the Dominican Republic. It says it was found in samples from pig via a cooperative surveillance program. As a result, the Department of Homeland Security’s Customs and Border Protection says it is “increasing inspections of flights from the Dominican Republic to ensure travelers do not bring prohibited products” into the U.S.
According to Reuters, the Dominican Republic is also taking action by restricting pig shipments and mobilizing the military to contain the spread of ASF. The agriculture ministry made the announcement on Thursday.
In the U.S., USDA says it has offered additional testing support to the country, which includes nearly 400 samples of hogs raised on farms and in backyards from the Sánchez Ramírez and Montecristi provinces. Officials in the Dominican Republic say Sánchez Ramírez has 15,000 pigs and Montecristi has 4,600 pigs out of 1.8 million nationwide.
The U.S. also says it will consult to the country and offered similar help to Haiti, which shares a border with the Dominican Republic.
In addition to the U.S., Mexico also took steps to prevent the virus from spreading there, blocking shipments of pork from the Dominican Republic.
“There is no type of vaccine for this terrible illness,” said Rafael Abel, the Dominican Republic’s president of the agricultural commission of the chamber of deputies, as he proposed killing all the pigs in the affected areas, which he says would result in around $180 million in losses.
According to Reuters, drastic measures have happened before. The Dominican Republic, with help from the United States and others, killed all its 1.4 million pigs to end its last ASF outbreak in 1978, according to a report presented to the World Organisation for Animal Health (OIE).
