What happens when our anti-vaxxer consumer becomes concerned with the idea that a vaccine may give chicken, hog, or cattle some sort of permanent health issues, like the ones they claim can result from human vaccination?

In its latest update on the global African swine fever (ASF) situation, Rabobank said hog losses in China have reached critical levels, the rest of the world’s producers cannot make up the difference, and disruption will intensify as the disease continues to spread.

New Hope Liuhe has completed construction on its first pig farm in Vietnam, according to a Reuters report.

A new study has found that general bans on the movement of livestock after a disease outbreak may not be the most economically feasible option.

In recent weeks, African swine fever (ASF) has been reported for the first time in Serbia, and the disease in spreading in domestic pigs in Bulgaria, Moldova, Poland, Romania, Russia, Slovakia, and Ukraine. Two new outbreaks have also been recorded in South Africa.

Perhaps it is an overreaction. Perhaps it is an opportunity to cut back on costs. Perhaps it is neither or both, but I have heard of cases where major pig producers are keeping growing-finishing gilts back for breeding as they decided to stop bringing in new genetic stock in fear of introducing the African swine fever (ASF) virus to their herds.

Another victim of the African swine fever (ASF) virus that is wiping out a huge chunk of the global pig industry, with no sign it has peaked, is the feed additives industry. Unlike previous years when this industry made tremendous gains by siding with the movement to reduce antibiotic usage in the animal industry, there appears very little role left for it to play in the crisis.

Elanco Animal Health Inc. has acquired Montreal-based Prevtec Microbia Inc., a biotechnology startup specializing in the development of vaccines that help prevent bacterial diseases in food animals.

Since the Chinese authorities reported the first cases of African swine fever (ASF) in Liaoning province in August 2018, the disease has spread widely within China, and to other states in Asia — Cambodia, Laos, Mongolia, Myanmar and Vietnam — as well as to Europe and South Africa.

While the central European state of Slovakia has confirmed its first ever cases of African swine fever (ASF), there have been reports of confirmed new outbreaks among domestic pigs in Bulgaria, Moldova, Poland, Romania and Ukraine.