Spain is investigating the origin of a deadly virus which has been detected in wild boar and which has caused several countries to stop importing Spanish pork products.
Local authorities in the northeastern Catalonia region were alerted after the bodies of two wild boar were found in Collserola natural park near Barcelona on November 28th, infected by the African Swine Fever (ASF) virus. The bodies of a total of 13 animals carrying the virus have now been found.
Spain had been free of ASF, which does not affect humans but is extremely deadly for pigs and boars, since 1994.
The local authorities have closed the park to the public and controls are in place across a wider buffer zone as they search for more infected animals. The military has been deployed to the area to help.
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Although the virus has not been detected on any farms, the Catalan government has agreed with the farming industry on the culling of 30,000 pigs in the area affected.
“The next two weeks will be crucial in terms of the development [of the virus],” agriculture minister Luis Planas said. “If it is confirmed that it has not spread to farms and we quickly manage to clean the area, we will have made great progress.”
Spain’s food industry, which included €8.7 billion in pork exports last year, has already been affected by the outbreak.
The United States, Canada, Russia, and several Latin American countries have stopped importing Spanish pork products. China, Spain’s biggest market, and the UK have softened their initial ban on Spanish pork, now only barring products originating in the province of Barcelona. The EU has not introduced any restrictions.
Daniel de Miguel, president of the industry association Interporc, has said that “we have to accept that difficult months lie ahead”. There is concern that any outbreak, however contained, could inflict long-term damage on the reputation of Spain, which is the EU’s prime pork producer.
The cause of the outbreak is still unknown. Initially, local authorities said they suspected a contaminated sandwich which a boar had eaten. However, the Spanish agriculture ministry has since revealed that it is investigating whether the virus originated from a research laboratory.
The body of the first animal discovered to have been carrying ASF was found just a few hundred metres away from an animal research centre, which had been working with the virus. The laboratory has denied that it was responsible for the outbreak.
It is one of five research centres in the area which are being audited in relation to the virus.
Meanwhile, in the neighbouring region of Valencia, the local government is also taking measures, including offering €40 to hunters for every wild boar they cull in areas where there is an overpopulation of the animals.
