BEIJING (Reuters) – China’s agriculture ministry said on Wednesday it has confirmed the first African swine fever outbreak in Shandong province, a major region for livestock production in the country’s east.
The highly contagious disease was found on a farm with 4,504 pigs in the provincial capital Jinan, infecting 17 of the animals and killing three hogs, the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs said in a statement.
China, home to the world’s largest hog herd, has reported more than 100 cases of African swine fever since last August.
Reporting by Tom Daly; editing by Richard Pullin
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source: reuters.com