This archive report was first published on 17 December 2019.
China's Slow Response to African Swine Fever Epidemic ¶
Published on December 17, 2019
China's slow response to the African swine fever epidemic has led to the devastating loss of roughly one-quarter of the world's pigs, reshaping farming and hitting the diets and pocketbooks of consumers around the globe.
The disease, which is highly contagious and untreatable, has spread rapidly across nine other Asian countries, particularly Vietnam, which is the world's fifth-largest pork producer and has lost much of its herd this autumn.
According to the United Nations' Food and Agriculture Organization, the epidemic could have broad and deep economic impacts at the global level, with pork prices in China more than doubling and the country's overall food prices increasing by one-fifth.
China's leadership has focused on remaking farming to stop the spread, with generous subsidies and the construction of industrial-scale farms with safeguards like quarantine areas for new arrivals and incinerators for diseased pigs.
However, the country's immediate response may have made the spread worse, with many farmers burying their dead pigs in secrecy rather than reporting them to the government for compensation.
As a result, culling has been slow, with official data showing only 1.2 million pigs, or less than 0.3 percent of the country's herds, having been culled.
Food experts say many of the country's vanished herds were likely butchered and turned into food, which would worsen the spread of the disease.
China's slow response to the epidemic has also led to a shortage of pork, with the country's pig prices soaring to $600 or more per animal.
Beef and lamb prices have also risen as families worldwide seek alternatives, with overall meat prices in international commodity markets increasing nearly 20 percent in the past year.
As the epidemic continues to spread, China's leadership is facing increasing pressure to take action to contain the disease and prevent further economic impacts.
