African swine fever: early detection is key to controlling spread

The European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) has published a risk assessment which concludes that improved surveillance, communication and collaboration are key to controlling the spread of African swine fever in Europe. 

The assessment, which was requested by the European Commission, evaluated the possibility of spread among nine disease-free countries, these being Albania, Bosnia-Herzegovina, Croatia, Greece, Kosovo, Montenegro, North Macedonia, Serbia and Slovenia.

The EFSA assessment concludes that the risk of the disease spreading among these countries within one year of introduction is very high (66-100%). However, the risk of the disease spreading west into other EU member states within the same time frame are rated as very low (0-15%).

Source: EFSA, 5 November 2019