The Agriculture Ministry prepared an extensive preventive action to protect Slovak farms from the African swine fever virus. The minister Samuel Vlčan informed about it at a briefing on Thursday, explaining that his ministry wants to reduce the numbers of the wild boar population by 100,000. Moreover, meat from healthy animals will appear on the shelves of Slovak shops again.
"Our goal is to protect Slovak pig farms so that our consumers always get high quality, safe Slovak pork on the table," stressed the head of the Agriculture Ministry. He believes that in order to meet this goal, it's necessary to reduce the number of wild boars in Slovakia that can spread the virus from affected to healthy areas by free movement. Experts say that comprehensive solution is necessary, as the animals don't respect borders of the districts. The Minister further stated that if the African swine fever virus affected pig farming, it could mean damage of up to €100 million, the loss of thousands of jobs and the disappearance of pig farming in Slovakia. He stressed that "If we do nothing, the traditional Slovak pig-slaughtering, home-made sausage and bacon will become a matter of the past".
