July 15, 2020

Philippines university forced to shut down swine farm over ASF threat

The University of the Philippines Los Baños (UPLB) has to temporarily shut down its swine experimental farm and terminate an ongoing research project following an outbreak of African swine fever in Laguna province, the Philippines. 

94 commercial and native pigs under UPLB's Institute of Animal Science (IAS) were culled, contradicting information from the provincial veterinary office that stated that about 200 pigs were affected by ASF.
 

The pigs that were culled were "healthy, with no signs typical of ASF," according to  IAS director Rommel Sulabo. Nevertheless, culling was a pre-emptive response to sporadic reports of infections in backyard farms in Los Baños town.
 

In an email correspondence, Sulabo said researches might continue through other partner institutions, although farm experiments were suspended. He added that his team had to cut down on swine research "since early this year" as they expected ASF to hit Los Baños.
 

ASF was first reported in the provinces of Rizal and Bulacan, and Quezon City in 2019. In Batangas province, early reports of the outbreak were recorded after the Taal Volcano eruption in January and in Calamba City, Laguna, sometime in March.
 

Laguna's veterinary office has culled around a thousand pigs, while several other areas remain under monitoring for ASF.
 

- Inquirer