Zambia starts slaughtering pigs infected with African swine fever

Via Xinhua :

" Authorities in Zambia have began a process of slaughtering pigs infected with African swine flu in Lusaka, the country's capital, in order to contain the outbreak of the disease, a senior veterinary officer said on Tuesday.

Joseph Mubanga, director of veterinary services in the Ministry of Agriculture and Livestocks told Xinhua that the slaughtering of the pigs started on Saturday and that so far 3,084 pigs have been slaughtered and the exercise will continue.

"We have so far visited 140 farms and these farms have 33,829 pigs. Out of the 140 farms, 18 have been found with animals that are with disease and this figure is at 7,033. These are the animals we are slaughtering," he said.

He however could not give the total number of pigs to be slaughtered, saying it will be premature to do so now because the number may increase or decrease depending on a number of factors."