One of the unique qualities of African Swine Fever is its amazing ability to travel in the wind. Castro claimed the U.S. had tried to use ASF in a biological attack, but the proclivity of ASF to travel as much as 200 miles via the wind, made many other sources likely. The U.S. was not found to have used ASF, but it is still on the list for a potential agri-bioweapon, but even without human intervention Mother Nature can decimate a swine industry.
China, where ASF is endemic, has had repeated outbreaks of African Swine Fever over the last five years, and it has popped up in Eastern Europe from time to time, recently.
An occurrence of ASF requires immediate destruction of the herd to eliminate the highly contagious spread to other farms.
Now, it has been reported that African Swine Fever has been detected in the Caribbean, the first identification in the Western Hemisphere in about 40 years, according to Agri-Pulse.
ASF was detected in the Dominican Republic and then spread to other farms. Haiti, part of the same island, is the nearest nation at risk from this occurrence.
The OIE is the international organization responsible for animal health and reporting outbreaks, and the Dominican Republic is to be commended for promptly reporting the first outbreak on July 29, 2021. Prompt reporting will ensure international resources to assist these nations and it also complies with international law. We have come to appreciate prompt reporting of outbreaks after the COVID-19 pandemic, still raging in its first significant variant phase, throughout the world, after witnessing what failure to promptly report can do to the world.
Given that the Dominican Republic is 700 miles from the U.S., it is in our interest to immediately assist the Caribbean nation and protect Haiti swine from the disease as much and as quickly as possible.
According to Agri-Pulse, China has lost more than a million pigs over the past five years. A University of Iowa study estimated that the U.S. would lose $40 billion over ten years if ASF appeared in the U.S..
The USDA has offered assistance to the Dominican Republic and Haiti, confirmed in a press release from the Department. The USDA is a robust federal government Department with unmatched expertise in animal diseases. They have the capability and capacity to assist the Dominican Republic and Haiti, and for many years they have all been in cooperation with surveillance programs.
Let's hope the Caribbean nations are open to assistance.
