Spain's huge pork industry seeks salvation from swine fever threat

Jordi Saltiveri remembers feeling "sad, angry, impotent" late last year when African Swine Fever (ASF) was detected in Spain. He says that "once it's known that a country is positive for ASF, other countries will stop importing its pork." Saltiveri states that "each pig we sell for slaughter has lost about €30 [$35; £26] to €40 of its value compared to before the outbreak."

The outbreak of the virus remains relatively contained and has not reached Saltiveri's farm in Lleida. The ground zero for the outbreak is Collserola Park, where the corpse of a wild boar infected by the virus was discovered in late November. The authorities moved quickly to shut down the park, restricting access to the area while searching for more infected corpses. Òscar Ordeig, the minister for agriculture, fisheries and food in the regional government of Catalonia, says that "being too permissive with wild animals has led to an overpopulation of rabbits, deer and wild boar." Ordeig estimates that the entire Catalonia region contains between 120,000 and 180,000 boar.

The local government's aim is to cut the boar population by half, and 24,000 animals have been culled so far this year. The rural police officers leading the cull are focusing in particular on a 6km (3.7-mile) radius around the first cases. A lower-risk zone with a 20km radius has also been delimited. By the end of March, 232 boars had tested positive. Brazil, Japan, Mexico, South Africa and the US have stopped importing Spanish pork.