African swine fever confirmed at Hong Kong slaughterhouse

African swine fever (ASF) has been confirmed at a slaughterhouse in Hong Kong, but plans to cull about 6,000 pigs have been hampered by meat traders, according to reports.

Hong Kong’s secretary for food and health Sophia Chan said the ASF virus was confirmed in a pig in the Sheung Shui slaughterhouse in the New Territories on Friday. The plant is reported to supply 80% of Hong Kong’s pork. The batch with the sick pig had already been released to the market before the disease was confirmed, according to reports. 

Ms Chan said all pigs in the slaughterhouse would be culled so that thorough cleansing and disinfection could be conducted. “The operation of the Sheung Shui slaughterhouse will be suspended until the completion of the disinfection work,” she said, adding that the government would enhance the surveillance and testing of pigs.

The Asia One news outlet said the infected pig was believed to have been imported from Zhanjiang in China’s Guangdong province. 

It also reports that pork traders were threatening to stand guard overnight to prevent officials from entering the city’s main slaughterhouse to cull some 6,000 pigs which they believed were safe for consumption.

For more on this story, see Pig World