BANGKOK, Sept. 19 (Xinhua) -- Thai Livestock Development Department on Thursday confirmed that livestock officials in Thailand's northern province of Chiang Rai have banned the movement of live pigs in and out of the province for six months after several pigs were found to be infected with African Swine Fever (ASF).
More than 200 pigs in Chiang Rai Province have, since beginning of this week, been culled and the carcasses destroyed.
Officials manning 12 road checkpoints in the province have been instructed to be more vigilant in their searches of vehicles, the department said.
Livestock Development Department chief Soravit Thaneeto said that officials and pig farmers in all provinces across Thailand have been told to increase preventive measures against the spread of the disease.
Soravit said the culling of the pigs was a preventative measure after two pigs died mysteriously in a district of Chiang Rai, only 20 kilometers from Myanmar.
"We cannot afford to take the risks. The Livestock Department is conducting autopsy and examinations of the two pigs that died mysteriously," said Soravit, "and the two pigs are only located just next to Myanmar, which the Myanmar Ministry of Agriculture, Livestock and Irrigation, has confirmed that the country has detected ASF in its pigs."
ASF is present throughout Asia, with South Korea the latest country to report an outbreak. The disease has spread across Southeast Asia, through parts of Europe and Africa.
