Thai authorities have confirmed that African Swine Fever (ASF) has been detected in a surface swab sample collected at a a slaughterhouse in Nakhon Pathom province.
One sample out of 309 collected tested positive for the deadly pig disease, including blood samples from pigs at 10 farms and surface swabs at two slaughterhouses in swine-raising provinces, Sorravis Thaneto, director-general of the Department of Livestock Development, said.
The confirmation marks the country’s first official case, but comes after years of Thai authorities denying local outbreaks of the fatal disease, Reuters reported.
Mr Thenato said that Authorities will declare a disease outbreak zone within a five kilmotre radius of where the sample was found, limit pig movements, consider culling animals suspected of being infected, and pay compensations to affected farms.
The cabinet on Tuesday also approved 574 million baht ($17.15 million) in compensation to smallholder farms in 56 provinces where pigs had been culled last year to prevent ASF and other viral pig diseases.
