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- I feel sorry for the pig: mass exercises to combat the African plague have begun in Russia
I feel sorry for the pig: mass exercises to combat the African plague have begun in Russia
Exercises to combat African swine fever are taking place in the Russian regions. In particular, they have already been conducted in the Kirov, Sverdlovsk, Ryazan, Omsk, Penza, Novgorod regions, Tatarstan, Udmurtia, Buryatia, Stavropol, etc. Mass cases of this disease in the Russian Federation have not yet been recorded, but ASF is actively spreading in other countries. According to the Rosselkhoznadzor, the disease has been recorded in wild and domestic animals in 18 European and six Asian countries, including those bordering the Russian Federation. The Ministry of Agriculture reported that the situation with ASF in the country can be described as stable. What is the danger of African swine fever — in the material of Izvestia.
Why is the African plague so dangerous
Mass exercises to combat African swine fever have begun in the Russian regions. As Izvestia found out, they have already been held in the Kirov, Sverdlovsk, Ryazan, Omsk, Penza, Novgorod regions, Tatarstan, Udmurtia, Buryatia, Stavropol and other regions. At the same time, the veterinary services of some territories have already issued appeals to the owners of pig farms of all forms of ownership and hunters about the existing threats to the spread of the virus.
Thus, the Rosselkhoznadzor administration for the Tyumen Region, Yamalo-Nenets and Khanty-Mansiysk Autonomous Okrugs reminded citizens of the need to comply with veterinary regulations on animal husbandry, as well as to immediately report to the service in case of their death or unauthorized burial.
A similar memo is being distributed to the public by the authorities of the Altai Territory, while they report cases in the neighboring region. "The African swine fever virus has been detected in the Kemerovo Region. To combat the spread of ASF, these animals will be seized and destroyed," the report says.
And in the Kirov region, the regional Department of the Ministry of Emergency Situations reports on the threats of the disease. "Due to the deterioration of the epizootic situation in African swine fever, it is possible that ASF may spread to municipalities in the Kirov region adjacent to those where a high—alert regime and an emergency situation have been introduced," the department explains.
African swine fever (ASF) is a deadly viral disease of domestic pigs and wild boars, regardless of age and breed. It develops very quickly: the incubation period is usually from two to 15 days. The animals have fever, depression, shortness of breath, nosebleeds, loss of strength and bluish skin in various areas. Most often, ASF leads to death — infected pigs die after 7-20 days, and with a super-acute course, death occurs after one to three days. At the same time, African swine fever does not pose a danger to humans: the infection is not transmitted to humans, only animals are sick. Eating pork is also safe, as the virus dies during heat treatment.
However, there is no official data on cases of ASF in Russia as of June this year. The latest Rosselkhoznadzor information on the epidemiological situation in the country is available on the agency's website on March 17. Then it was reported on the operational map of the service that the disease was not registered in the country.
At the same time, according to the Rosselkhoznadzor, as of June 2, the disease was recorded in wild and domestic animals in 18 European and six Asian countries. This includes Bulgaria, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Hungary, Germany, Greece, Italy, Latvia, Lithuania, Moldova, Poland, Romania, North Macedonia, Serbia, Slovakia, Ukraine, Croatia, Montenegro, Estonia, as well as Mongolia, Malaysia and other countries.
Currently, the situation with African swine fever in the country can be described as stable, the press service of the Ministry of Agriculture told Izvestia.
"In order to prevent the introduction and spread of the ASF virus in our country, measures are being taken on an ongoing basis to improve the biological security of livestock facilities, as well as command and staff exercises at both the regional and interregional levels," the department noted.
In addition, they said that measures to prevent and prevent the spread of animal diseases, including ASF, are being implemented as part of the implementation of the instructions of the government's permanent anti-epizootic commission and the roadmap for improving Russia's veterinary safety system.
The Ministry of Agriculture, together with the Rosselkhoznadzor, has also developed a unified response algorithm for detecting infectious diseases, in particular those common to humans and animals, containing a list of key measures for registering animal diseases, including ASF.
Izvestia sent a request to the Rosselkhoznadzor with a request to comment on the situation with the risks of ASF in the territory of the Russian Federation, as well as measures that are being taken in this regard.
Is Russia facing an ASF epidemic
Yuri Kovalev, General Director of the National Union of Pig Breeders of Russia, told Izvestia that the situation with ASF in Russia is under control.
— The virus has always spread among wild animals: wild boars. He is still present with them. But in Russia, unlike in other countries, the work on combating this disease is carried out at the state level. There is a special permanent anti-epizootic commission headed by Deputy Prime Minister Dmitry Patrushev. She regularly holds headquarters where all interested government agencies, governors, and businesses participate, where the current situation and necessary measures are discussed," he explained.
According to him, this is a very complex work that has been built over the past 15 years. It included four important constituent factors. First, the restoration of the vet service vertical in the regions, which was controlled by the Rosselkhoznadzor. Secondly, the biosafety of pig breeding enterprises themselves was strengthened, although it required large investments from the business, but the highest standards were set, Yuri Kovalev emphasized.
— All these years, pork production in Russia has been growing by 10-15%. And even the entry of ASF viruses into the country could not affect this, as the enterprises were well protected," he explained to Izvestia.
Another protection factor, according to him, was the increased control in the Russian Federation over personal subsidiary farms, which are practically not protected from ASF. Therefore, rules for keeping pigs were developed, and their mandatory identification was introduced. The last factor is the decrease in the population of wild boars in the Russian Federation, said Yuri Kovalev.
— All this allowed us, if not to get rid of the disease, then at least to control its threat to industrial production. In the first half of the year, we have not had any serious outbreaks of ASF in industrial production," explained a representative of the professional community.
Former Deputy Minister of Agriculture of the Russian Federation Leonid Kholod told Izvestia that, in general, it is impossible to defeat African swine fever. Therefore, prevention and quarantine measures are important, especially where it is detected.
But the fact that there is a disease along the perimeter of our borders cannot but cause concern, since ASF is very dangerous and spreads among animals in the same way as influenza in humans. Therefore, it is impossible to allow the import of meat from sick animals into the country, the expert stressed.
Переведено сервисом «Яндекс Переводчик»
