Gauteng farmers have been warned of a new outbreak of African swine fever.
The Gauteng government says it is taking the necessary steps to contain the virus, which was recently detected in pigs.
MEC for Economic Development, Environment, Agriculture and Rural Development, Kgosientso Ramakgopa says humans are not susceptible to the disease.
“This is not a human health hazard. There is no known adverse impact on the health of human beings, so it is not something equivalent to listeriosis. It’s only isolated to pigs,” Ramakgopa stresses.
He points out that pig farmers in Nigel and Daveyton, as well as areas in Ekhurhuleni and some parts of the West Rand, are affected.
“It’s affecting largely what we call subsistence farmers, so not necessarily people at a commercial level but we saw that we need to address it before it becomes a major issue in the industry because it can have a devastating effect on the industry,” Ramakgopa explains.
