The UK has introduced urgent measures to strengthen protection against African swine fever in Europe

The UK Government has announced new measures to better protect pig producers from a potential outbreak of African swine fever (ASF) as the disease continues to spread across Europe. The mitigation measures will help prevent the spread of ASF across the border, protecting the pig sector, which is worth more than £8 billion to the UK economy. The first outbreaks of ASF in 2024 were reported in Poland and Germany in June, with cases also rising in the Baltic states over the summer months. The highly contagious and deadly disease affects pigs and wild boar and can be transmitted through infected meat, but does not pose a risk to human health. The new protective measures aim to protect UK livestock by preventing the spread of the disease to the UK. Import ban from 27 September To protect the pig industry and farming in the UK, personal imports of pork and pork products from the European Economic Area (EEA), the Faroe Islands, Greenland and Switzerland are banned from 27 September, ...