More than 900 pigs have been culled in the outlying county of Penghu after some hogs on the auction block at the county’s meat market earlier this week were found to have blisters on their mouths, the Council of Agriculture said in a statement.
After the discovery, managers at the market moved quickly to try to contain the outbreak. They immediately slaughtered all 30 pigs that were in the same truck compartment as the first infected animals, and disinfected the market’s holding pens and equipment.
The county government then announced a suspension of the meat trade and a ban on the movement of cloven-hoofed animals throughout the county, pending an investigation of the cause of the outbreak.
Initial tests on samples collected from the ailing pigs showed that they were infected with an O-type foot-and-mouth disease (FMD) virus, said Huang Kuo-ching (黃國青), deputy director of the council’s Bureau of Animal and Plant Health Inspection and Quarantine.
As the investigation unfolded, authorities determined that the infected pigs came from Penghu’s largest hog ranch, Huang said.
County officials found other pigs at that ranch showing symptoms of FMD.
Huang said his bureau immediately ordered the slaughter of every pig at the ranch. As of Wednesday noon, 969 pigs had been culled.
The council brought soldiers in Penghu to assist with the slaughter and burial of the carcasses.
The bureau has also widened its probe to two farms located within a 3km radius from the original ranch, but found none of their pigs showing FMD symptoms.
Huang said his bureau would continue monitoring conditions at those two farms.
In the wake of the latest FMD outbreak in Penghu, Huang said, his bureau will launch checks on hog, cattle and goat ranches throughout Taiwan to prevent the spread of the disease.
POLAM KOPITIAM CASE: Of the two people still in hospital, one has undergone a liver transplant and is improving, while the other is being evaluated for a liver transplant A fourth person has died from bongkrek acid poisoning linked to the Polam Kopitiam (寶林茶室) restaurant in Taipei’s Far Eastern Sogo Xinyi A13 Department Store, the Ministry of Health and Welfare said yesterday, as two other people remain seriously ill in hospital. The first death was reported on March 24. The man had been 39 years old and had eaten at the restaurant on March 22. As more cases of suspected food poisoning involving people who had eaten at the restaurant were reported by hospitals on March 26, the ministry and the Taipei Department of Health launched an investigation. The Food and
The long-awaited Taichung aquarium is expected to open next year after more than a decade of development. The building in Cingshui District (清水) is to feature a large ocean aquarium on the first floor, coral display area on the second floor, a jellyfish tank and Dajia River (大甲溪) basin display on the third, a river estuary display and restaurant on the fourth, and a cafe and garden on the fifth. As it is near Wuci Fishing Port (梧棲漁港), many are expecting the opening of the aquarium to bring more tourism to the harbor. Speaking at the city council on Monday, Taichung City Councilor
A fourth person has died in a food poisoning outbreak linked to the Xinyi (信義) branch of Malaysian restaurant chain Polam Kopitiam (寶林茶室) in Taipei, Deputy Minister of Health and Welfare Victor Wang (王必勝) said on Monday. It was the second fatality in three days, after another was announced on Saturday. The 40-year-old woman experienced multiple organ failure in the early hours on Monday, and the family decided not to undergo emergency resuscitation, Wang said. She initially showed signs of improvement after seeking medical treatment for nausea, vomiting and diarrhea, but her condition worsened due to an infection, he said. Two others who
Taiwanese should be mindful when visiting China, as Beijing in July is likely to tighten the implementation of policies on national security following the introduction of two regulations, a researcher said on Saturday. China on Friday unveiled the regulations governing the law enforcement and judicial activities of national security agencies. They would help crack down on “illegal” and “criminal” activities that Beijing considers to be endangering national security, according to reports by China’s state media. The definition of what constitutes a national security threat in China is vague, Taiwan Thinktank researcher Wu Se-chih (吳瑟致) said. The two procedural regulations are to provide Chinese