FVO: implementation of the Classical Swine Fever eradication programme in Romania

According to FVO's report about the outcome of an audit carried out in Romania from 10 to 13 September 2013 with the objectives to assess compliance with specific EU requirements for the control of classical swine fever (CSF); the level of preparation of the Romanian competent authorities (CAs) in order to ensure the effective implementation of control measures against CSF and the implementation of the programmes for control and monitoring of CSF in Romania, according to data provided by the CAs, the cumulative results obtained during 2012 and so far in 2013 from the implemented CSF control and monitoring programmes indicate that it is highly unlikely that the CSF virus has circulated in the domestic and wild pig populations in Romania for at least the last 12 months. In relation to commercial pig holdings, the CAs can ensure that as a result of both their targeted control efforts, which have been found to be fit for purpose and largely effective, and the high levels of bio-security consistently applied in these holdings; the risks of infection with the CSF virus and, if that happened, of transmission of the disease from them, are negligible.

However, deficiencies in the implementation of the CSF control and monitoring programmes approved for 2012 and 2013 still undermine the effectiveness of the control system put in place by the CAs in order to fulfil the overall objectives of those programmes and, thereby, decrease the reliability of the epidemiological picture that can be drawn from results of that implementation.

The main deficiencies are:

• The limited effectiveness of official controls on identification of animals and their movements in back-yard holdings and the absence of enforcement of legal requirements in that respect.
• Information obtained from the epidemiological surveys designed for surveillance for CSF in back-yard holdings is not robust enough because of a number of design faults and implementation gaps.
• The very limited passive surveillance in numerous counties with a fairly large pig population, which casts doubt on the effectiveness of the early warning system for CSF in those areas.
• The lack of legal powers to ensure that surveillance for CSF is effectively carried out in all privately run wild boar hunting areas.

As a consequence, the measures to verify the CSF free status of the non-commercial domestic pig herd and the wild boar population in Romania could be improved.