The World Organisation for Animal Health has declared Taiwan free of foot and mouth disease. This opens a path for Taiwan to resume pork exports to the world after a hiatus of more than two decades.
Taiwan has been shut out of the global market for pork products since an outbreak of foot and mouth disease that hit its pig farms in 1997. The outbreak cost Taiwan’s pork industry more than NT$170 billion (US$5.7 billion).
In 2017, the World Organisation for Animal Health said that Taiwan was free of foot and mouth disease in places where pigs had been vaccinated. But the government continued working to eradicate the disease completely.
In 2018, Taiwan stopped vaccinating pigs in order to see whether foot and mouth disease was still present. No new cases appeared after a year-long observation period. Then, in September last year, the government applied to the World Organisation for Animal Health to have Taiwan officially declared free of the disease. The declaration finally came on Tuesday.
Agriculture officials say Taiwan will first resume pork exports to Singapore, Hong Kong, and Macau. They also have their eyes on the US and Japanese markets. But they say that Taiwan will need to eradicate another disease-- classical swine fever-- before exports to these markets can start again.