Environment Food and Rural Affairs written question – answered am ar 17 Gorffennaf 2013.
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what assessment he has made of the potential effect on the UK pig sector of porcine epidemic diarrhoea from China and the US entering the UK.
DEFRA undertakes routine scanning surveillance for the detection of new or re-emerging animal diseases that may pose a threat to animal health or public health. The Animal Health and Veterinary Laboratories Agency led Pig Species Expert Group (SEG) are aware of porcine epidemic diarrhoea (PED) and the emergence of a new virulent strain in the USA and China. The SEG routinely looks for changes in trends of disease diagnosed in Great Britain and also consider samples where it is has not been possible to reach a diagnosis through routine testing. Threats identified are then escalated to the Veterinary Risk Group for consideration and to the UK's four Chief Veterinary Officers. In this way, we can identify new diseases like PED that are not notifiable and do not require specific legislative control measures.
As PED is not a notifiable disease, nor is it listed by the OIE (the animal equivalent of the WHO), DEFRA is not required to carry out an assessment of its impact. Working with the pig industry, the SEG can raise awareness of this disease to enable industry to ensure best practice biosecurity measures are in place. Indeed, the National Pig Association is at present raising awareness with its members of the need for strict biosecurity measures to support their disease prevention and control.
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