Vaccines against African Swine Fever (ASF) being tested in Vietnam are now close to approval, according to global and US veterinary officials, in what would be a major breakthrough in tackling the deadly animal disease that regularly ravages pig farms worldwide.
ASF has disrupted the global pork market for years. The worst outbreak, in 2018-19, resulted in the deaths of about half the domestic pig population in China, the world's biggest producer, causing massive losses and huge disruption within global supply chains.
After decades of failed attempts due to the complexity of the virus, two vaccines co-developed by US scientists being tested in large pilot schemes by Vietnamese companies are showing "promising" results, Gregorio Torres, head of the science department at the World Organisation for Animal Health (WOAH), said.
An approved vaccine could change the dynamics of the pork market and markedly reduce the impact ASF has on production and trade flows. It remains uncertain when the vaccine will be approved for use or if it receives approval in the EU. However, EU pork producers and processors hope that positive results will be confirmed in further testing. One market source commented, “ASF has been a major issue in the EU; we rely on the capability of exporting pork to international markets. We saw the impact of an export ban on margins for all EU exports when Germany was banned from exporting to certain countries, due to ASF. We look forward to having a proven vaccine. However, we are aware that we will probably still need to wait a little longer until we see it on the market in the EU.”
