The agriculture council says that if African swine fever breaks out in Taiwan, the government will impose a ban on the transport and slaughtering of pigs for at least one week.
African swine fever does not affect humans but it is fatal to pigs. The disease has spread to 11 Asian countries, following an outbreak in China last August.
Deputy Agricultural Minister Huang Chin-cheng said on Monday that in the event of a confirmed case, it will restrict the transport of pigs within a three-kilometer radius of the infected farm. The ban will be lifted only if no new cases are reported for 20 days. In addition, they will ban the transport of live pigs to other counties and cities for slaughtering for at least one week.
The government on Monday unveiled its efforts to keep the highly contagious disease from spreading in Taiwan. The authorities will monitor farms near the outbreak. They will also install warning systems on vehicles transporting pigs, and set up checkpoints. There are also plans for setting up disinfection and quarantine stations, and for handling and disposing of carcasses. The authorities will also conduct random inspections to test pigs for African swine fever.