The USDA has announced its intent to designate Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands as an African Swine Fever Protection Zone. Both U.S. territories are near the Dominican Republic which recently detected ASF in their country. Minnesota Pork CEO Dave Preisler says the U.S. Pork Industry has been working with USDA for this designation which allows the U.S. to maintain its current animal health status should ASF show up.
He says having this zone in place allows surveillance steps to be taken to prevent any movement of the disease should it appear.
Preisler says their goal is to keep ASF out of the United States because if it were to show up on U.S .shores the effects to the pork industry would be devastating.
Preisler says U.S. pork producers have been very proactive in instituting biosecurity efforts to protect their operations from foreign animal disease such as ASF and those efforts are continuing.
