Prosciutto may disappear: Italy has been gripped by swine fever

In Italy, since January 2022, when the swine fever epidemic began, almost 120,000 heads have been destroyed, three quarters of them in the last two months alone, when the situation worsened. The Independent publication writes that at the beginning of September there were already 24 outbreaks of the disease. Lombardy was the most affected, where the disease was detected in domestic pigs on 4,500 square kilometers, in particular the regions of Piedmont and Emilia-Romagna, which are famous for Parma prosciutto. Coldiretti, Italy's influential agricultural lobby group, estimates the damage to the industry to date at 500 million euros, and some farmers could lose their livelihoods. "The spread of swine fever has reached alarming proportions, endangering not only the health of animals, but also the entire pig sector," - warned the president of Confindustria, Ettore Prandini. As soon as swine fever was confirmed in Italy, 12 countries, including China, Taiwan and Mexico, imposed an ...