Taiwan has become free of foot-and-mouth disease and classical swine fever without the need for vaccination, an achievement matched by no other nation, a Council of Agriculture (COA) official said yesterday.
Other nations have taken 20 to 30 years, while it took Taiwan only six years, COA Deputy Minister Huang Chin-cheng (黃金城) said.
After keeping African swine fever at bay in 2018, the World Organisation for Animal Health declared Taiwan proper, Penghu and Matsu free of foot-and-mouth disease and in 2020 allowed pork exports from those areas.
Photo: CNA
However, nations such as Japan still ban imports of pork products from areas with classical swine fever, including Taiwan.
The council yesterday announced that from next year, domestic pigs and piglets would not have to receive vaccinations for classical swine fever.
From July 1, breeding pigs would also not have to receive that vaccination, it added.
Ending classical swine fever vaccinations can lift pig farmers’ confidence and save up to NT$700 million (US$22.8 million) a year in vaccination and labor costs, Huang said.
The council plans to apply to the world animal health body in June 2024 for Taiwan to be recognized as free from classical swine fever when vaccinations have not been used for a year.
The application is to undergo a review process, which takes about two months, Bureau of Animal and Plant Health Inspection and Quarantine Director-General Tu Wen-jane (杜文珍) said.
As the Animal Health Research Institute has a reference laboratory for classical swine fever approved by the world animal health body, Taiwan’s application should be convincing, Tu said.
If the application is successful, Taiwan would be declared a swine fever-free area at the organization’s conference in 2025 and would be the first Asian nation to be approved, she said.
Taiwan would become one of the few nations free of the three major diseases that affect pigs — foot-and-mouth disease, classical swine fever and African swine fever — which would boost the competitiveness of the nation’s pork products, COA Minister Chen Chi-chung (陳吉仲) said.
The achievement is a result of pig farmers’ cooperation, the COA’s policies and leadership, and the implementation of a plan by the bureau and the institute, Chen said.
Huang played a huge role, holding dozens of forums and communicating with pig farmers, he said.
Stepping up quarantine measures at customs and checking mail and packages to guard against African swine fever were crucial to preventing it from entering Taiwan, and also reducing the risk of foot-and-mouth disease and classical swine fever, he said.
The COA would continue to help meat processing plants obtain hazard analysis and critical control points certification, set up a slaughterhouse-to-butcher cold chain in the pork industry and upgrade facilities on pig farms, he added.
The government would continue to strictly control foreign pork products entering Taiwan and improve the treatment of kitchen waste before feeding it to pigs, Huang said.
Additional reporting by CNA
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