KOTA KINABALU – The Sabah Veterinary Services Department (DVS) has declared an outbreak of the African swine fever (ASF) in Pitas following the detection of the virus among pigs in the district.
State Agriculture and Fisheries Minister Datuk Seri Jeffrey Kitingan said the department has been given authority under Subsection 45(1) of the Animal Enactment 2015, to take the necessary action to curb the spread of the disease.
“The section provides for the culling of pigs in affected areas, and controlling the movement of pigs and the selling of pork products originating from affected areas.
“At the same time, the affected villages and premises will be disinfected and the government, through the DVS, will kick off an awareness campaign to heighten people’s understanding of the disease,” he said in a statement today.
Kitingan said the affected pigs will be killed as ASF is a highly infectious disease with no cure or vaccine for prevention.
Compensation for the farmers whose pigs have been culled is being considered by DVS, and the amount will be determined later
Kitingan said the culling of all affected pigs will be done as soon as possible because ASF is a highly infectious disease with no cure or ready vaccine to prevent the disease.
The government said control measures will be coordinated via the district disaster management committee.
The whole effort is expected to be completed in six months, said the Keningau MP.
“Our main goal is to stop this disease from spreading to commercial pig farms based in Tuaran, Kota Kinabalu, Papar, Sandakan, and Tawau,” he said.
Currently, ASF has not affected the production of pork meant for domestic consumption, valued at around RM300 million a year, he said.
“We also took note of the Sarawak government’s decision to ban pork and pork products from Sabah.
“However, we are confident the ban will not leave a significant effect on the pork industry in Sabah,” said Jeffrey, adding that ASF is disease that only affects pigs and is harmless to humans.” – The Vibes, February 23, 2021
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