More than 10,000 pigs to be culled as swine fever spreads in Japan

A swine fever epidemic is continuing to spread in Japan, with local authorities in five central and western Japan prefectures saying Wednesday they are struggling to contain the highly contagious pig virus that was first reported in September.

“We are facing an extremely serious situation,” agriculture minister Takamori Yoshikawa told a meeting at his ministry in Tokyo.

The Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries also set up a special task force in Gifu Prefecture to step up containment efforts.

Spilling over from farms in Gifu, the classical swine fever (CSF) virus was newly detected by prefectural and local authorities at farms in neighboring Aichi as well as in Osaka, Shiga, and Nagano prefectures.

The total number of pigs to be culled at affected farms is expected to reach 15,000.

The disease does not affect humans even if meat from an infected animal is consumed, but it is fatal to pigs.

Around 130 wild boars in Gifu and Aichi prefectures have tested positive for infection despite experts’ initial assumption that it would not spread among the animals, which typically do not live in large herds.

The World Organization for Animal Health suspended Japan’s status as a CSF-free country after the outbreak in September. Although there is a vaccine to counter the disease, using it could prevent Japan from regaining the CSF-free status and hinder the nation’s plan to expand pork exports.

The Aichi Prefectural Government began culling around 6,600 pigs at a farm in the city of Toyota with the help of the Ground Self-Defense Force while banning shipments from six farms located within 10 kilometers of the farm.

Swine fever was detected at a farm in the city of Gifu in September, the first such discovery in Japan since 1992, and has been found in over 100 wild boars across Gifu and Aichi prefectures.