African swine fever virus detected in ten regions of Russia

Earlier, the federal service reported that in 2022, 141 outbreaks of ASF disease were registered in RUSSIA, 68 in the population of domestic pigs, which is two times lower than in 2021, as reported by Parlamentskaya Gazeta. In 2023, the situation with ASF in the country remains unfavorable, although controlled, the department noted.

According to new data, outbreaks have been recorded in the Primorsky and Stavropol Territories, the Donetsk People's Republic, as well as in the Astrakhan, Volgograd, Kaliningrad, Kostroma, Oryol, Samara, Yaroslavl regions. it is specified that 14 of them occurred among domestic animals and another 21 among wild boars.

According to Mir 24, on Thursday, due to African swine fever, quarantine was introduced in certain territories of the Minusinsk district of the Krasnoyarsk Territory. According to ROSSELKHOZNADZOR, in mid-March, information was received about the death of pigs in a personal subsidiary plot in the territory of the village of Malaya Minusa. From here it is forbidden to EXPORT food, MEAT and livestock. The day before, 17 dead pigs with ASF were found in Khakassia. On March 16, a high alert regime was introduced on the territory of Chernogorsk.

Now they are figuring out where the meat came from the farm in the Krasnoyarsk Territory, where the plague was found, informs the media. It is known that among the buyers is a meat processing plant in one of the southern regions. About 600 kilograms of products could have ended up on the shelves of Khakassia stores.

African swine fever virus is transmitted through food, mucous membranes, respiratory tract and wounds. It is carried by pigs, insects, rodents and birds that eat leftover food, as well as by humans on the skin. ASF is not dangerous for people and pets, but the virus constantly mutates. Studies have shown that people may have antibodies to it - if the body defends itself against the disease, then infection is possible.

At the same time, it is specified that the mortality rate of pigs from African swine fever is almost 100%. Scientists all over the world have been working on a vaccine for animals for many years. “So far, none of the vaccines being developed provides acceptable levels of protection, has side effects, while there is not a single registered vaccine,” Marina Efimova, professor at the Department of Epizootology and Parasitology of the Kazan State Academy of Veterinary Medicine named after Bauman, told the TV channel.

Since animals are one of the main carriers of infection, they are constantly tested for plague. It is specified that over the past 10 years, about 500 outbreaks of the disease have been recorded in Russia, more than a million animals have been destroyed to prevent the spread of ASF. The damage amounted to about 30 billion rubles.