Two more fish farms in Taoyuan have been hit by the tilapia lake virus, bringing the total number of farms affected to nine since the virus was first reported in the city on June 13, the Council of Agriculture (COA) said on Thursday.
All of the infected farms are in the city’s Guanyin District (觀音), Bureau of Animal and Plant Health Inspection and Quarantine Deputy Director-General Shih Tai-hua (施泰華) said.
After the first report of infections, the city government had ordered inspections of all ponds within a 3km radius of the site to cover other 22 tilapia farms, and on June 23, the inspections were expanded to cover a 5km radius to include another 24 farms.
The inspection showed that the virus has infected two more ponds, Shih said.
Although the virus only infects tilapia and there is no risk of its passage to humans, it is incurable and is listed as a major infectious disease by the World Organization for Animal Health.
Because the virus has just been discovered, a lack of data has made it difficult for the government to determine its origin, COA Deputy Minister Huang Chin-cheng (黃金城) said.
The government has since stepped up measures to contain an outbreak, Huang added.
Seven nations have thus far reported the presence of the virus: Colombia, Ecuador, Egypt, Israel, Thailand, China and Taiwan.
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