Papua New Guinea Fears Spread of Swine Fever From Indonesia

Text of report by Papua New Guinea Post-Courier website on 23 February

A highly contagious pig disease is believed to be in Jayapura, Indonesia, and may spread into Papua New Guinea. The National Agricultural Quarantine and Inspection Authority (NAQIA) issued a warning yesterday that the hog cholera (swine fever) was reported to be in Jayapura, just a few kilometres off the border.

Hog cholera is a deadly disease of pigs and can spread very quickly and kill lots of pigs within a short time. The last reported outbreak was in Timika in Papua Province [Irian Jaya], Indonesia, in 2004.

NAQIA southern regional veterinary officer Dr David Thomson said the disease only affected pigs and not human beings. Dr Thomson said humans could not be affected if they ate cooked affected pigs but he advised that all sick pigs must not be eaten. He said all pig meat must be cooked properly and scraps must be disposed because if other pigs eat the scraps they would contract the disease. He said the disease was caused by a virus and was highly contagious because once detected in an area of pigs, 88 per cent would be affected.