[Asia Economy Reporter La Young-cheol] Gangwon Province is implementing triple-layered quarantine measures focusing on all livestock farms in the province as the risk of African Swine Fever (ASF) spreading from wild boars to farmed pigs is gradually increasing due to the spread of ASF among wild boars.
On the 20th, Gangwon Province stated, "ASF cases have been occurring from the west to the east of Gangwon and are gradually moving southward, making the entire province highly vulnerable to ASF outbreaks."
According to the province, ASF virus was recently detected in wild boar carcasses in Yeongwol County (8 cases) and Yangyang County (6 cases).
In response, the province plans to implement first-level quarantine by controlling the entry of livestock vehicles into pig farms, second-level quarantine by designating ASF-focused management zones, and third-level quarantine by installing fences around pig farming complexes and densely populated village areas.
The first-level quarantine involves identifying livestock vehicle access to all pig farms in the province, installing internal and external fences and quarantine stations, and controlling the entry of livestock vehicles and personnel involved in feed delivery and pig transport until the end of February.
The second-level quarantine designates the entire province as an ASF-focused management zone, installing eight key quarantine facilities at all pig farms and combining farm quarantine systems (hardware and software) to fundamentally block virus outbreaks.
The eight key quarantine facilities include ▲external fences ▲internal fences ▲quarantine stations ▲anterooms ▲loading/unloading docks ▲insect and pest screens ▲carcass storage facilities ▲and goods entry facilities.
The installation deadline is May 15 for cities and counties adjacent to border areas (Cheorwon, Hwacheon, Chuncheon, Yanggu, Inje, Goseong, Yangyang, Hongcheon), and June 30 for southern Gangwon cities and counties (Yeongwol, Gangneung, Hoengseong, Pyeongchang, Wonju, Taebaek, Samcheok, Jeongseon).
The long-term third-level quarantine involves installing fences around pig farming complexes and densely populated village areas to enhance the effectiveness of the first and second-level quarantine measures.
This measure reflects the opinions of pig farmers considering recent ASF virus detections in Yeongwol and Yangyang counties, which occurred outside the existing wide-area fences.
Hong Kyung-soo, Director of Animal Quarantine Policy, stated, "The triple-layered quarantine measures promoted by Gangwon Province are optimized key policies to block ASF at pig farms," urging farmers to comply with quarantine rules.
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