A food assurance chief is asking pig farmers to be vigilant as the risk of African Swine Fever (ASF) coming to the UK has increased.

Earlier this month ASF genotype II was confirmed on mainland Italy for the first time in 40 years. This same strain has been confirmed in other parts of Europe, in Asia and in Africa.

African swine fever (ASF) is a highly contagious viral disease of domestic and wild pigs. While it's not a danger to human health, it has devastating effects on pig populations and the farming economy - and there is currently no effective vaccine against ASF. 

Red Tractor pigs chairman Stewart Houston is urging the UK's pig farmers to maintain good biosecurity since the virus can survive on clothes, boots, wheels and other materials.

It can also survive in various pork products, such as ham, sausages or bacon, which is why it's vital that pigs are not fed any food waste.  

In a post written on the Red Tractor website, Stewart wrote: "As farmers, it’s our responsibility to ensure the health and well-being of the animals in our care.

"The risk of ASF reaching the UK has increased: if it were to arrive here, it would have a devastating impact on the health of our pig population and the domestic and international trade of pigs and pork."

While ASF virus can move to a new area through the movement of infected live animals, contaminated equipment or infectious products, the Animal and Plant Health Agency (APHA) consider the human route (e.g., in passenger luggage, farm workers, etc..) to be the highest risk pathway.

The human route is considered the virus' most likely route of entry to the UK - for example, via pork products in passengers' luggage.

The risk of ASF infected pork being brought into the UK via people has been risk assessed as ‘high’, even though the overall risk for all pathways is medium.

Stewart reminds farmers that pigs must not be fed food waste. He wrote: "As the ASF virus survives well in uncooked, cured, or frozen meat, one key measure is to make sure you are not feeding your pigs any food waste.

"It is illegal to feed catering or domestic food waste, including from vegetarian and vegan kitchens, to pigs or wild boar, as there is a risk of spreading disease.

"Instead, you should feed your pigs specially formulated commercial pig feed and fruit and vegetables that have never entered a domestic or commercial kitchen and haven’t come into contact with products of animal origin such as meat or dairy.

"You should also avoid leaving food waste in areas where wild boar or feral pigs roam and it is not recommended to provide any supplementary commercial feed for feral pigs or wild boar, to avoid encouraging them."

As for biosecurity, he urged all farm workers and visitors to use dedicated clothing and footwear when entering pig premises and to disinfect vehicles before and after.

Further advice on how to practice good biosecurity can be found at gov.uk/guidance/disease-prevention-for-livestock-farmers.