Local authorities are moving quickly to try to contain an outbreak of costly blue ear pig disease in north China, according to Chinese news agency Xinhua. (See Recent pig deaths in China attributed to blue ear disease on Meatingplace.com, Feb. 10, 2009.)
Officials have quarantined 10 villages where infected pigs were found and so far culled 936 infected pigs. Vaccine for 165,000 pigs have been sent to Hongtong, along with 430 exposure suits, 4.1 metric tons of disinfectant and 610 syringes for injections.
The county has also allocated 1 million yuan (about $147,000) to compensate farmers who lost pigs.
Xinhua also reported that two local officials have lost their jobs over this week's discovery of more than 1,000 pigs found dead from the disease.
Blue-ear disease is an economically important pandemic that causes reproductive failure in breeding stock and respiratory tract illness in young pigs. China spent considerable money and effort to stem a massive outbreak in 2007 that led to record pork imports in 2008.
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