Up to 4,000 pigs are to be slaughtered in Belgium due to the risk of African Swine Fever (ASF) in Étalle, located in the province of Luxembourg.

The Belgian federal minister Denis Decarne has said that the cull is vital to tackling the disease, despite the fact that only nine wild boars had been affected in the area so far.

Despite the minister’s insistence that Belgian’s 6m pork population was completely healthy, some European countries have stopped buying pork from Belgium.

The proximity of the breakout in relation to other European countries is also deeply unsettling for Belgium's European neighbours.

The European Commission is covering 50% of the costs involved in the cull.

Europe

The spread of ASF has been increasing across Europe, with fears that wild boars will spread the disease to domestic pig units.

If the disease continues to spread, the European Commission says that it is ready to amend Rural Development Programmes to give support to producers if they decide to implement a cull.

Irish authorities have requested citizens and visitors not to bring pork products into the country from Europe or other affected countries, including China.

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