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African swine fever outbreaks continue in China and abroad

The director of the Swine Health Information Center confirms an African swine fever outbreak has occurred in China for the first time in nearly three months.

Dr. Paul Sundberg tells Brownfield his contacts say ASF is very much alive and well in China.

“It continues to circulate. (China) might report outbreaks, but there are outbreaks happening and outbreaks going on that may not be reported.”

He says there’s a huge push in China to repopulate its breeding herd and get back to levels not seen since before the ASF outbreak began in 2018.

“That’s a push uphill for them because of the biosecurity issues. They’ve learned a lot of lessons, and we’re talking to those folks in order to learn those lessons and get those things in preparation for ASF here.”

Sundberg says African swine fever continues to spread throughout parts of Asia and Europe and has even been reported in South Africa.