Spanish laboratory confirms presence of African swine fever virus in Moldova
12:42 | 06.10.2016 Category: Economic
Chisinau, 6 October /MOLDPRES/- Laboratory tests on two hotbeds of African swine fever virus (ASFV), discovered in two settlements in Donduseni district, were confirmed by the Central Veterinary Laboratory from Madrid, Spain, the National Food Safety Agency (ANSA) announced today.
ANSA director-general Gheorghe Gaberi said that 13 samples, collected from 7 domestic pigs from Mosana and Cernoleuca villages, Donduseni district, on 23-26 September 2016, had been sent to the EU laboratory from Spain.
“Initially, the laboratory samples have been sent to the national centre of veterinary diagnostics, which confirmed the presence of virus. Yet, for reasons that our laboratory is not accredited to international level, the samples have been sent abroad, where the results were confirmed. Presently, all measures have been carried out in the two areas in order to prevent spread of the disease in other regions of the country,” Gaberi said.
For his part, ANSA deputy head Vsevolod Stamati said “the two settlements, during 45 days, had been declared as the area of outbreak of swine fever, sanitary filters were installed at all entrances and exits from villages, and police and veterinary specialists assure that people should not take out pork meat beyond the border of the area.”
The officials noted they informed all international institutions about the virus, and the Moldovan embassies were willing to provide aid not to allow its spread. Also, Spain will offer 1,200 sampling kits for laboratory, as well as support for combating this virus.
According to the authorities, the risk of its spread exists due to citizens who do not want to comply with the requirements in such situation, even if they are informed at local and national level about consequences of this disease. In the context, ANSA specialists recommended the people to take all measures in order not to allow the virus to spread.
African swine fever virus (ASFV) was brought into the country through an individual from Donduseni district, who purchased raw pork meat from a settlement in Ukraine, and after its processing, he gave waste to pigs and infected them. ASFV is a contagious disease affecting domestic and wild pig species. The disease is not transmitted to humans.
(Reporter P. Beregoi, editor L. Alcază)
