June 10, 2011

Myanmar's Rangoon halts pork sale due to PRRS

The sale of pork is terminated in Rangoon's Hlegu Township now because of an occurrence of Porcine Reproductive and Respiratory Syndrome, commonly known as "blue ear disease".

According to an official at Livestock Breeding and Veterinary Department (LBVD), the outbreak began in pig breeding farms in Hlegu and caused the death of swine everyday.

The official said an investigation is being carried out by a group of LBVD workers and pork in Hlegu Township has been totally banned for sale to other Rangoon neighbourhoods.

"We are now in the process of controlling the disease. We also ordered people not to sell pork outside Hlegu Township," he said.

However, the ban of trading pork does not apply to the whole of Rangoon Division.

Local people remain afraid of eating the meat as the media reported that the disease can be passed to humans, said the owner of a pig processing factory in Rangoon.

Blue ear disease first began in Mandalay, the country's second biggest city, in late February. It spread to Burma's capital Naypyidaw in April and has now appeared in Rangoon.

Around 600 pigs died in Mandalay in February due to blue ear disease, while more than 200 died in Pyinmana and Naypyidaw in April and a significant quantity have also perished in Pegu Division.

The LBVD is also conducting the clean-up process in Rangoon and warned sellers not to trade pork from dead pigs.

Critics, however, said that it is hard to know whether pork in the market came from healthy or diseased animals, as some vendors come to Rangoon markets from areas a long distance away.