ASF Germany: 9th farm confirmed infected

German authorities have reported a 9th pig farm to be infected with African Swine Fever. The virus was confirmed in a finishing farm in the state Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, in the country’s north east.

The infected farm is located in the district Vorpommern-Greifswald. According to the local news outlet NDR the finishing farm has about 3,500 animals on site, which will all be culled. On Wednesday 2 animals would’ve been developing fever, whereas a third had died, the NDR reported. The farm would be located near the town Pasewalk, at about 20 km from the border with Poland.

The infection was confirmed today by the German reference laboratory Friedrich-Loeffler-Institut (FLI). In a press release, the FLI stated that the exact origin of the infection is unclear. In the direct vicinity, according to the FLI, there is no ASF in wild boar. Allegedly, the virus has been discovered at a slaughter plant.

Obviously the farm has been closed for transport. So far nothing has been communicated about the farm’s size. Later this afternoon, more details will become known about the outbreak. In the map below, the new outbreak has been added – it is the farm most north-west. The exact location is not known, which is why this marker has provisionally been placed in the centre of the district Vorpommern-Greifswald.

The moment of the infection is remarkable. It has been over a year since the previous outbreak in domestic pigs was reported in Germany (February 2023). It is the 2nd outbreak on a farm in the state Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, which is bordering Poland. The other outbreaks in domestic pigs were in Brandenburg (5), Baden-Württemberg (1) and Lower Saxony (1).

NDR quoted Till Backhaus, minister of agriculture of the state Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, who commented: “There are currently many indications that we are dealing with a point entry, similar to what we experienced in November 2021, when the virus was first detected in Mecklenburg-Vorpommern.”

Tags: African Swine Fever, Germany, wild boar, pig farm