Strengthening Livestock Epidemic Prevention Measures Ahead of Seollal Holiday... Nationwide Simultaneous Disinfection

Joint Inspection Team Checks Participation Status in 'National Simultaneous Disinfection Day'

[Sejong=Asia Economy Reporter Joo Sang-don] With the Lunar New Year holiday approaching and an expected increase in movement of people and vehicles for homecoming and ancestral rites, the government is launching a nationwide simultaneous disinfection campaign.

On the 8th, the Ministry of Environment and the Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs announced that they will strengthen the quarantine system against livestock infectious diseases.

Highly pathogenic avian influenza (AI) has occurred 87 times in poultry farms, and the number of detections of highly pathogenic antigens in wild birds has sharply increased from 15 cases in November last year and 45 cases in December to 103 cases so far in January. African swine fever (ASF) in wild boars has also continued to increase since this winter, with 79 cases in December last year, 96 cases in January this year, and 31 cases in February, totaling 1,038 cases to date.

First, the Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs is conducting a 'Campaign to Eliminate Viruses in Poultry Farms' until the 28th to prevent highly pathogenic AI. About 4,500 local government officers are directly guiding and inspecting farms using checklists and leaflets. In addition, local governments, NongHyup, and military units are mobilizing up to 1,000 disinfection vehicles to continuously disinfect areas around farms, village roads, migratory bird habitats, and wild boar ASF outbreak areas.

In particular, the days before and after the Lunar New Year holiday (February 11?14), specifically on the 10th and 15th, have been designated as 'National Simultaneous Disinfection Days' to conduct large-scale disinfection of livestock farms, related facilities, and vehicles. Livestock farms and facilities will simultaneously disinfect interiors, exteriors, equipment, and supplies using their own disinfection equipment such as high-pressure sprayers, while livestock vehicles will visit nearby key disinfection facilities or be disinfected by their affiliated companies. A joint inspection team consisting of 26 teams (52 members) from local governments and quarantine headquarters plans to check the participation status on site.

The Ministry of Environment will conduct a nationwide inspection of vulnerable fence sections before and after the Lunar New Year holiday to reinforce damaged sections and areas showing signs of wild boar movement. During the holiday period, 87 dedicated fence management personnel will be deployed to maintain the fence barrier status. Furthermore, to prevent illegal activities such as illegal wild boar hunting or self-consumption, prior guidance will be provided, and a poaching surveillance team of 130 members will be deployed to strengthen on-site monitoring.

An official from the Ministry of Environment urged, "Visitors to ancestral graves should immediately report any discovered carcasses and refrain from actions that attract wild boars, such as 'gosurae' rituals." They also requested that related agencies, including local governments, ensure thorough quarantine guidelines such as keeping fence gates closed and advising against visiting pig farms after entering the mountains, especially as the number of homecoming visitors increases."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.