HEAL ▶▶▶TH
ASF in the Americas is not science fiction
Provided that North and South America stay free of African Swine Fever (ASF), both continents could have some profitable years. Very few remember that in the 1970s and early 1980s, the virus was already present there – leading to the culling of at least 1.2 million pigs.
BY VINCENT TER BEEK, EDITOR, PIG PROGRESS D
ead pigs in a ditch, wood and tyres among them, and men around them ready to cremate it all. The picture on the right could be a scene from Eastern Europe or Asia, showing an attempt to limit the ef-
fects of a recent ASF outbreak. The black and white of the pic- ture, however, gives it away. This is not 2020 – this was more than 35 years ago. And it’s certainly not “East”. The picture is hanging in the Museum of the Revolution in Havana, Cuba. In the 1970s and early 1980s, long before the current waves troubling Europe and Asia, and at a time when the virus was present in Africa and the Iberian Peninsula, four countries in the Americas were confronted with ASF too: apart from Cuba (2x), these were the Dominican Republic, Haiti and Brazil. Pig Progress dived into the history books to learn more – the re- sult can be read in the boxes on the pages on the following pages. Three conclusions jump out. Firstly, when all documented cullings are added up, ASF caused at least 1.2 million pigs to die in the Americas, see Table. Secondly, this literature review reveals that most likely there wasn’t just one introduction of the virus. One occurred in Cuba 1971, and two roughly simultaneously happened in the Dominican Republic and Brazil in 1978. Thirdly, the virus travelled by boat or by plane. In other words, humans had brought the virus in. Much has been learned about ASF since then. While oceans are a great biosecurity barrier, it’s good to remember that the virus has managed to join humans on their travels to reach the Americas three times – and that that happened at a time when the world was not as connected as today.
Special thanks to Dr Cesar Corzo, University of Minnesota; Luc Willekens, HoCoTec; Daniel Azevedo Duarte, correspondent; Dr Tânia Pereira Freitas, Lanagro; and Dr Kyoung-Jin Yoon, Iowa State University.
6 ▶PIG PROGRESS | Volume 36, No. 1, 2020
Pigs about to be burned after an ASF outbreak in Cuba.
Total number of recorded outbreaks and culled pigs at ASF outbreaks in the Americas, 1971-1983.
Country Year Cuba 1971 Brazil 1978-1981 Dominican Republic
1978-1980
Haiti 1978-1983 Cuba 1980 Total
Outbreaks 33
231 374 93 56
787
Culled pigs 463,332 66,966
192,473 384,391 137,287
1,230,449
PHOTO: MUSEUM OF THE REVOLUTION, HAVANA, CUBA
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