Tasek gelugor: The Penang Veterinary Services Department (JPVPP) has stepped up efforts to curb the spread of African Swine Fever (ASF), which has been detected at three pig farms in Kampung Selamat here. JPVPP director Dr Saira Banu Mohamed Rejab said ASF was first reported on July 7 after members of the public spotted pigs at a farm in Kampung Selamat showing clinical signs of the disease.

According to BERNAMA News Agency, the animals were later sent to a slaughterhouse in the Seberang Perai Utara (SPU) district, and the department immediately conducted inspections and collected samples from farms in the area. To date, 188 pigs have been culled and 45 carcasses disposed of at the first farm, while 70 pigs have died at the second farm from ASF-related complications.

Dr Saira Banu stated that the third farm remains unentered, although signs of illness have been reported among pigs there. All pig carcasses from the ASF-infected farms have been safely buried, with disposal works completed at the first and second farms. The number of farms confirmed to be infected with ASF remains at three, with no new farms reporting cases.

She urged pig farmers to stay vigilant and enforce restrictions on the movement of pigs from positive farms to designated slaughterhouses. The JPVPP is enhancing biosecurity monitoring and control at surrounding farms, while additional sampling is ongoing at farms identified as at risk.

The media had reported that laboratory test results from the Northern Zone Veterinary Laboratory confirmed ASF infections at three pig farms in Kampung Selamat. Two of the affected farms were noted to have high mortality rates among livestock, raising concerns over the potential spread of the disease to neighboring farms.