S. Korea to ban entry of cars to pig farms in border areas due to ASF-infected wild boars

SEOUL, April 20 (Yonhap) -- South Korea said Monday it will ban the entry of all automobiles involved in the livestock industry to pig farms in border areas amid the soaring number of African swine fever (ASF) infections detected from the remains of wild boars.

The new measure, to go into effect in May, will affect around 395 pig farms in the northern areas of Gyeonggi and Gangwon Provinces, according to the Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs.

The decision came as South Korea believes the entire border area might have been contaminated. The country has detected at least 545 ASF cases from wild boars caught or found dead from the border areas through Sunday since October last year.

South Korea confirmed its first-ever outbreak of the animal disease in September last year. So far, local authorities have culled about 400,000 domestic pigs as part of preventive measures.

Although no additional ASF cases on farms have been reported since early October, authorities have been discovering dead wild boars carrying the disease along the inter-Korean border.

So far, all confirmed cases among both domestic and wild pigs have been reported in such areas.

South Korea plans to deploy six unmanned helicopters to carry out disinfection operations near the border.

colin@yna.co.kr
(END)