Lithuania: measures taken due to the detection of the African Swine Fever

The State Food and Veterinary Service of the Republic of Lithuania informs that due to the detection of African Swine Fever in the samples taken from wild boars hunted in Šalčininkai and Alytus-Varėna districts the fallowing measures have been taken:

• In accordance with the order of the Director of the State Food and Veterinary Service, the infected area has been defined, which covers Alytus, Druskininkai, Varėna, Šalčininkai, Lazdijai, Trakai districts.
• The following measures have been applied in the infected area:
  • Ban on the export of live pigs from the districts of the infected area, except if they are transported directly to Lithuanian slaughterhouses;
  • Ban on wild boar hunting with beaters
  • Ban on the use of the meat of hunted wild boars for food until testing results from the laboratory are received
  • Ban on the export of live pigs, pork meat and its products from the districts of the infected area.

Instructions for hunters:

• Hunted boars must be handled only in the special pre-treatment areas. Animal by-products must be placed in special sealed animal waste pits.
• The meat of hunted wild boars must be kept in isolated premises until the ASF testing results are received
• It is forbidden to invite hunters from other districts to avoid the spread of the disease.

The State Food and Veterinary Service of the Republic of Lithuania also informs about other measures that have been taken all over Lithuania :

1. The monitoring of pig farms has been intensified and the control of compliance with bio-safety requirements has been strengthened in all pig-keeping locations;

2. The sampling of wild boars and pigs and testing of the samples for the African and Classical swine fever has been intensified in the National Food and Veterinary Risk Assessment Institute

3. The management control for animal-by products has been strengthened all over Lithuania

4. The official veterinary control for pig traders, pig-keeping locations, pig carriers and carried animals has been strengthened.

5. Additional information about the risk of the spread of ASF has been provided to private veterinarians, livestock inseminators. It has also been reminded that it was forbidden for persons working in pig-keeping places, visitors and other persons, which are not permanently working in the pig-keeping places, but perform certain actions in these premises or carry out their control, to visit the premises if within the period of 48 hours they have visited other pig, wild boar or domestic pig and wild boar hybrid keeping places, wild boar hunting or their pretreatment areas, slaughterhouses, animal by-product handling locations.