Bulgaria cleared from African Swine Fever by EU

Bulgaria has been declared free from African Swine Fever by the EU. Bulgaria is no longer on the list of countries with a ban on the movement of live pigs, according to the Bulgarian Food Safety Agency (BFSA). According to the latest EU reports, the country was free from AVP findings for six months.

The decision of the European Commission takes into account the effectiveness of the surveillance and control measures of the Bulgarian inspection services, as well as the favorable epidemiological situation of classical swine fever in Bulgaria.

Classical swine fever can seriously affect the animal population and the profitability of agriculture, and can disrupt the transport of those animals and meat products within the EU and exports to third countries.

Scottish pig farmers have asked the British government to introduce controls on pork imports from EU countries as soon as possible to prevent swine fever from spreading to Britain.

The disease is currently spreading in Germany and has previously been found in Belgium, Slovakia, Romania and Poland. In France, the authorities held a first 'exercise' last week for a possible first ASF report on French territory.

Scottish livestock farmers are concerned as no controls have been carried out on incoming EU pork since the January 2021 Brexit. This is because British customs at airports and ports are not yet fully operational.

Moreover, British pig farmers are already in a bind due to the consequences of Brexit, as a result of which almost all foreign workers at the slaughterhouses have (had to) leave the country. As a result, slaughtering capacity has been seriously reduced, and British pig farmers have already had to kill almost 20,000 pigs prematurely.

The United Kingdom has also been struggling with a serious shortage of truck drivers since Brexit. According to the UK transport sector, there is an immediate need for 80,000 new employees. To fill these vacancies, the government offers temporary work permits, but most truckers are not keen on that.