China Identifies Pig Disease, Warns it Could Sprea
05月08日 2007年 4:47 am

China's agriculture ministry says it has identified an animal disease that has killed at least 300 pigs in the southern province of Guangdong since late April.

The ministry said Thursday the hogs were infected with a strain of blue-eared pig disease, and warned the illness could spread during hotter summer weather. It says the disease does not affect humans. The agriculture ministry says it is difficult to determine the prevalence of the disease because China's pig industry is fragmented, with many hogs raised on small farms or by individual farmers.

The Chinese government says it will speed up production of a new vaccine for the pig disease and distribute it to farmers in affected areas. Chinese state media say people in parts of Guangdong have stopped buying pork for fear of eating tainted meat.

中国农业部说，它已查明4月下旬以来在广东省致使至少300头猪死亡的猪瘟病因。

农业部星期四说，这些猪染上了猪蓝耳病变异病毒，并警告说，这种病在炎热的夏季有可能扩散。它说，这种疾病不会感染人类。农业部说，由于中国养猪业零星分散，很多猪在小型养猪场或者由农民个人饲养，因此很难确定疫情范围。

中国政府表示将加快生产针对这种猪瘟的疫苗并把疫苗分发给疫区的农民。中国国家媒体说，广东部份地区的居民因为害怕吃带病的肉，已不再购买猪肉。