The recent discovery of “three wild boar carcasses in severe decomposition” by the mayor and residents of the village of Serata Rezesti, Leova district, has caused deep concern among pork industry operators. The picture described by eyewitnesses looks disastrous from a sanitary and veterinary point of view: the carcasses were partially eaten by birds and other animals that could become disease carriers.
Pig farmers believe that the incident in Leova explains the wave of infections in domestic animals that was subsequently reported in households in Hincesti district (Lăpuşna and Fairlădeni villages).
“Catastrophic management”.
Representatives of the association are outraged by the “passive way of preventing and detecting new outbreaks. They have no doubt that the spread of African swine fever on farms is provoked by “exceptionally catastrophic management of wild fauna”.
The association draws attention to the fact that since the beginning of the year it has warned authorized state agencies about the critical situation in the regions. However, “the Ministry of Environment and the Forestry Department continue to demonstrate their detachment from the real state of affairs”.
In addition, Order No. 14 of January 28, issued by the minister, suspended the hunting of wild boars in the middle of the season, which contradicts the need for responsible management of epidemiological risks. “There are no sanitary shootings or active monitoring. We only become aware of the presence of plague in the region when the virus has already caused serious damage,” argue representatives of the pork industry.
Last year, due to ASF outbreaks on two of the largest pig farms, one-third of Moldova’s commercial pig herd was destroyed.
