There are signs that African Swine Fever (ASF) is again making its presence felt in eastern Europe after a quiet period over the last few months.

The disease has been reported for the first time in Belarus, where one domestic pig died and the rest of the small village herd was destroyed in order to contain the disease. The outbreak was in the region of Grodno, which is in the west of the country and borders Lithuania and Poland. The disease gets ever closer to the EU.

In Russia, a total of 17 new ASF outbreaks have been reported since 6 June in Voronezh Oblast, which lies in south-west Russia near to the border with Ukraine. There were two cases among 47 wild boar and 32 deaths of domestic pigs among 147 susceptible animals in small, village herds.

Also in Russia, the Volgograd veterinary authorities have reported a new case of ASF following the study of samples taken on a farm in the village of Nekhevskaya.

As with other pig diseases, tight biosecurity can play a vital role in controlling the spread of infection.

The Canadian Swine Health Board says animal health officials have stepped up their focus on the cleanliness of trucks returning to Canada from the US in an effort to contain the spread of Porcine Epidemic Diarrhoea virus (PEDV).

And finally, in the latest development of the merger between Smithfield and Shuanghui, it is reported that the Chinese partner has received US$7.9 billion in loans from Bank of China and Morgan Stanley for its acquisition of America’s largest pork producer, Smithfield Foods.