CHINA, Beijing. The People’s Republic of China is facing a major crisis for the pig production sector following the occurrence of African swine fever on its territory. Noting that China is the world’s leading producer of pigs and pork meat, and the Chinese market is virtually self-sufficient in terms of domestic consumption, Eloit emphasised that controlling the spread of the disease to farms and regions that are currently free is of crucial importance to limit the socio-economic and commercial repercussion of the epizootic.
During the meeting, the Director General of the OIE commended the regularity with which the Veterinary Services of China have been notifying the OIE of information on the identified cases of African swine fever and she made a point of acknowledging the considerable resources being deployed to detect and respond to outbreaks.
Kangzhen and Eloit also discussed conditions relating to the operational implementation of concepts recognised by the OIE Terrestrial Animal Health Code that enable safe management of trade flows, such as compartmentalisation.