- Livestock disposal due to space constraints: numerous animals are being butchered
In the heavily impacted region of Groß-Gerau due to the spread of African Swine Fever, around 500 animals were culled from two major pig farms. The operations themselves were not infected with the disease, as reported by the district on Friday. The healthy pigs were butchered at a slaughterhouse in Northern Germany to make room for the remaining inventory.
The two farms located within the inner containment zone 3, where the virus was detected in local pig populations, are currently struggling to sell their animals. However, they've continued to produce offspring recently. The butcher shop is the only one in Germany authorized to slaughter pigs from containment zone 3 at the moment. Smaller butcher shops lack the facilities for separate preservation of the meat. It's said that this meat will now be frozen. All pigs underwent testing prior to slaughter. According to the Ministry of Agriculture, the processing of the meat will proceed as usual.
African Swine Fever was initially identified in a wild boar within the district of Groß-Gerau around mid-June. This infectious and typically fatal disease for both wild and domesticated pigs has no cure. It poses no threat to humans or other animal species, as per the Federal Ministry of Food and Agriculture. To date, eight farms have been impacted by an outbreak in the district, resulting in the killing of nearly 4,000 pigs.
The affected farms in Groß-Gerau are not limited to the two major pig farms; several other operations in Northern Germany have also taken in animals from the containment zone to accommodate the remaining inventory. Despite the current challenges, farmowners in Northern Germany have expressed concerns about the potential impact of African Swine Fever on their local pig populations.
