Thirteen countries have now officially announced the suspension of any Belgian pork imports, following the discovery of ten dead wild boars infected with African swine fever in Wallonia, according to the Belgian Federal Agency for the Safety of the Food Chain (Afsca). Afsca specifies that the trade restrictions vary with respect to different pork product import, some only affecting gelatine products, while others target the exportation of living animals.
The list of countries that have suspended their pork imports from Belgium have been extended, and now comprises of South Korea, China, Taiwan, Belarus, Mexico, The Philippines, Japan, South Africa, Serbia, Singapore, Uruguay, Australia and Malaysia.
No trace of the swine fever has however, been detected at any Belgian pig farms. The swine fever is not transmittable to humans, but affects wild boars, pigs and warthogs.
The DNA samples taken from the contaminated wild boars found in Wallonia are still under analysis.
The Brussels Times
