April 7, 2011

Russian Arctic farm hit by African swine fever

African swine fever has been confirmed in pigs held at a backyard farm at Russia's Arctic naval base of Severomorsk in the Murmansk region, the country's animal and plant health watchdog said on Wednesday (April 6).

The plant health watchdog, Rosselkhoznadzor, said that all 21 pigs held at the farm had either died or been culled. Veterinaries are investigating the origin of the disease.

African swine fever is a viral disease which is lethal to pigs has been detected in various localities mainly in the south of the country. The disease does not pose threat to humans.

The disease was confirmed in March in the Leningrad region in the country's northwest, Rosselkhoznadzor said.

The disease had been detected in the country's northwest in 2009 and UN's Food and Agriculture Organisation (UN FAO) had said it feared the disease could spread from Russia to the EU and China.