The South African Pork Producers’ Organisation (Sappo) has assured South Africans that the country’s pork is still healthy and safe to eat despite an African swine fever (ASF) outbreak on a farm in Gauteng.

The Department of Agriculture, Land Reform and Rural Development’s spokesperson, Reggie Ngcobo, said the farm had been placed under quarantine and provincial veterinary services were identifying any properties that could have had contact with the farm.

CEO of Sappo Johann Kotzé said ASF posed no risk to human health. “Through the meat safety acts and the meat safety procedures and protocols which we follow through abattoirs and processing plants, we ensure that consumers will still have the opportunity to buy healthy, nutritious and safe pork,” he said.

Farms quarantined in three provinces

In a statement last week, Ngcobo said farms in Gauteng, North West and Free State had been placed under precautionary quarantine as a result of the outbreak.

“The ASF-negative status of these farms will be confirmed before the precautionary quarantine can be lifted. The source of the infection on the positive farm has not yet been identified, but it is believed that the infection was already on the farm from mid-December,” he said.

He said outbreaks of ASF started in previously ASF-free areas of South Africa in 2019 and spread to many other areas.  

“The spread of the disease seems to have slowed down, with fewer new properties becoming infected since October 2022. 

“Control measures are based on quarantine and movement controls, with awareness drives to highlight essential biosecurity measures to enable pig owners to prevent infection of their pigs,” he said.

“All pig farmers and pig keepers are again urged to only buy pigs directly from known healthy herds and to prevent contact between their pigs and other pigs or wildlife.

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“Visitors should be discouraged from coming into the area where pigs are being kept. Anyone who has contact with pigs should wash their hands before and after handling the pigs; and before moving to other farms, one should ensure that they have thoroughly showered and to only use clean clothes, shoes and equipment,” Ngcobo said.

“Pig owners are encouraged to be extra vigilant and to report any increased pig deaths or unusual symptoms to the local state veterinary office. All pig owners are also reminded that section 11 of the Animal Diseases Act makes every animal keeper responsible to prevent the spread of disease from their animals or land to other properties.”

North West Department of Agriculture MEC Desbo Mohono said there were no confirmed cases of ASF in the province.

Bronwyn Engelbrecht, the DA Gauteng shadow MEC for agriculture and rural development said: “ASF is not to be confused with swine flu, and residents do not need to be alarmed because this is not an animal-to-human transmissible disease.

“The latest ASF has been discovered on a very large piggery in Gauteng. Wherever the virus is found, all pigs in the piggery must be slaughtered, as there is no cure for ASF. All surrounding farms have been put in quarantine, including farms in the North West and the Free State, where ASF has also been discovered.

“The DA urges residents not to purchase pigs from friends or auctions or from local farmers that the provincial authorities have not sanctioned, as this is how the virus spreads from infected pigs.” DM/OBP