July 24, 2014

As Latvia is currently fighting to control an outbreak of African swine fever in the local pig population, the country declares a state of emergency in one of its areas, the second to be affected so far.

At present, 26 wild boar and 19 pigs on 11 farms have been tested positive for the disease, with 185 being put down.

The extension of the emergency quarantine zone means large swathes of Latvia's borders with Belarus, Estonia, Lithuania and Russia now fall within it. Inside the zone, animals cannot be shifted between farms as access is restricted to infected farms. With the government's approval of measures including compensation for small farmers who have had to slaughter diseased pigs and broader rights for veterinary officials in accessing private property, inspectors are also permitted to order culls on the spot.

Prime Minister Laimdota Straujuma warned of "major losses" to the farming sector unless the swine fever disease is contained, with Russia and Belarus already implementing bans on Latvian pork products. He blamed wild boar crossing in from Russia for Latvia's first-ever outbreak of the disease, detected on June 26.

Experts believe the outbreak first emanated from Belarus, and was also confirmed earlier this year in wild boar within Poland and Lithuania.

Although the disease is harmless to humans, it is fatal against pigs and has no known cure.

Posing a lethal threat to commercial pig farms, African swine fever has spread throughout the Balkans, the Caucasus and Russia since 2007, and is endemic to areas of Africa, according to the United Nations' Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO).

The FAO warns of "vast losses" if it migrates from Russia to China, which is home to half of the world's pigs.