General Discussion
Related: Editorials & Other Articles, Issue Forums, Alliance Forums, Region ForumsPig 'ebola' virus sends shock waves through global food chain
What started with a few dozen dead pigs in northeastern China is sending shock waves through the global food chain.
Last August, a farm with fewer than 400 hogs on the outskirts of Shenyang was found to harbor African swine fever, the first ever occurrence of the contagious viral disease in the country with half the worlds pigs. Forty-seven head had died, triggering emergency measures including mass culling and a blockade to stop the transportation of livestock. Within days, a government notice proclaimed the outbreak effectively controlled.
It was too late. By then, the disease had literally gone viral, dispersed across hundreds of miles in sickened animals, contaminated food, and in dirt and dust on truck tires and clothing. Nine months later, the contagion has spread nationwide, crossed borders to Mongolia, Vietnam and Cambodia, and bolstered meat markets globally.
While official estimates count 1 million culled hogs, slaughter data suggest 100 times more will be removed from Chinas 440 million-strong swine herd in 2019, the Chinese zodiacs year of the pig. The U.S. Department of Agriculture forecast in April a decline of 134 million head -- equivalent to the entire annual output of American pigs -- and the worst slump since the department began counting Chinas pigs in the mid 1970s.
https://www.msn.com/en-us/money/markets/pig-ebola-virus-sends-shock-waves-through-global-food-chain/ar-AAAOEYK?li=BBnb7Kz
MoonRiver
(36,926 posts)UniteFightBack
(8,231 posts)eaters can do.
MoonRiver
(36,926 posts)Zoonart
(11,828 posts)TA-DA! It still baffles my family. LOL.
Sienna86
(2,148 posts)It can be done.
MoonRiver
(36,926 posts)Zoonart
(11,828 posts)I guess he did not want to cook for himself. LOL. He has become a pretty good vegetarian cook though.
spanone
(135,777 posts)What could possibly go wrong?
https://www.motherjones.com/food/2019/04/trump-is-about-to-make-the-pork-industry-responsible-for-inspecting-itself/