Gyeonggi-do, All Epidemiological Farms in Yangju Test Negative in African Swine Fever Detailed Inspection Results

Confirmed no transmission
Daily clinical surveillance at pig farms in northern Gyeonggi
Strengthened quarantine measures upon suspected cases at pig farms

Gyeonggi Province announced on the 26th that all tests came back negative after conducting thorough inspections on the quarantine zone and epidemiologically related livestock farms following the outbreak of African Swine Fever (ASF) at a livestock farm in Yangju.

The Northern Gyeonggi Animal Hygiene Testing Laboratory has been intensively disinfecting vulnerable farms and surrounding roads after the third case of African Swine Fever in the province this year occurred on the 16th at a pig farm located in Yangju-si. Provided by Gyeonggi Province

On the 16th, the third ASF case this year in the province occurred at a pig farm in Yangju, Gyeonggi Province. The province mobilized 160 available disinfection vehicles, including those from the joint control team, to intensively disinfect vulnerable farms and surrounding roads. Clinical surveillance and comprehensive inspections were also conducted on neighboring quarantine zone farms and epidemiologically related farms.

To prevent disease transmission between farms, the province deployed 32 livestock quarantine officers in 17 teams to conduct clinical and detailed inspections on 45 farms within a 10 km quarantine zone around the affected farm (40 in Yangju, 5 in Dongducheon) with a total of 71,088 pigs (twice), and on 9 epidemiological farms (4 in Paju, 5 in Pocheon) once. All results were negative. Additionally, clinical surveillance of 146 epidemiological farms related to slaughterhouses also returned negative results, confirming no transmission.

The province plans to continue thorough surveillance activities of pig farms in northern Gyeonggi, including the affected areas and epidemiological farms, until the movement restrictions in the affected areas are lifted.

Jung Bong-su, Director of the Northern Gyeonggi Animal Hygiene Testing Laboratory, stated, “Winter is a period when wild boars have difficulty finding food and may appear near farms, so pig farms should manage the eight major quarantine facilities (outer fence, inner fence, quarantine room, anteroom, loading/unloading area, insect and rodent screens, carcass storage facility, and goods entry facility). They should also follow basic quarantine rules such as changing shoes and disinfecting when moving between inside and outside the farm, prohibit entry into the mountains, and immediately report any suspicious symptoms at the farm to the quarantine authorities.”

Meanwhile, since the first occurrence of ASF in farmed pigs in 2019, 49 cases (20 in Gyeonggi Province) have been reported in 19 cities and counties across Gyeonggi, Incheon, Gangwon, and Gyeongbuk regions as of the 18th. In wild boars, 4,200 cases (676 in Gyeonggi Province) have been reported nationwide across 43 cities and counties.