NIBONG TEBAL: African Swine Fever (ASF) has now spread more widely in Penang, with seven more pig farms being hit, bringing the total number of farms affected by the outbreak until today to 18, in three districts.
Chief Minister, Chow Kon Yeow, said that these 18 commercial pig farms - 14 are in the Seberang Perai Selatan (SPS) district, and two each in the Seberang Perai Tengah (SPT) and Seberang Perai Utara (SPU) districts - involve 48,194 pigs.
"Previously, farms infected with ASF were only in SPT and SPS, but sampling conducted by the Penang Department of Veterinary Services (DVS) confirmed that the disease has now spread more widely, and infected pigs are in the area of Kampung Selamat in SPU, near here.
"In order to control and prevent the spread of ASF disease, Penang DVS is conducting a stamping out policy through the culling of infected pigs in farms or suspected to be infected in the infection zone, in accordance with the Malaysian Veterinary Protocol (PVM) for ASF disease," he said at a press conference at Perkampongan Valdor, here on Thursday (Jan 19).
He said that until Thursday, a total of 4,204 pigs have been culled from infected farms in the SPS district, and this move was still actively being carried out to curb the spread of this disease. The disposal of the animals would continue, which was expected to take weeks.
Chow said that the state government had also identified a 16ha land site, in an area far from public settlements and with no development, to be used as a disposal site, so that it could be carried out smoothly without causing disruption to the public.
He also said that the supply of pork in Penang was confirmed to be safe and still sufficient to meet the needs of the people, especially ahead of the Chinese New Year celebration, as there were still farms which were still free of this disease.
Meanwhile, the state DVS director, Dr Saira Bani Mohamed Rejab, who was also present at the press conference, said that her department was always transparent and provides all reports and results regarding the laboratory tests conducted by the Penang JPV to the farmers involved.
She said that regarding compensation, DVS provides compensation between RM400 and RM800 for each adult pig, but there were some conditions which must be complied with by breeders. - Bernama
