The UK has recently lifted restrictions on pork imports from Spain, which were initially imposed due to the detection of African swine fever (ASF). Last week, the UK’s Department for Environment, Food & Rural Affairs (Defra) implemented blanket controls, but has now introduced regionalisation measures that allow pork imports from Spain, excluding areas affected by ASF.
Under these new guidelines, shipments will be permitted as long as they originate from regions free of the disease. However, any pork imports from the Cerdanyola del Vallès municipality in Barcelona—where ASF has been detected—will still be held at border control posts.
Spain’s Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food issued an alert last Friday, following the discovery of two dead wild boars with ASF near Bellaterra in Cerdanyola del Vallès. Confirmed by the Central Veterinary Laboratory of Algete in Madrid, these are the first cases of ASF detected in Spain since November 1994. The situation escalated quickly, with the number of cases rising to nine, all within the same region. Consequently, a control and surveillance zone has been established with a 20-kilometer radius around these cases.
A Defra spokesperson stated, “We take the threat of animal diseases extremely seriously and our commitment to maintaining the country’s biosecurity is unwavering. Following an outbreak of African swine fever in Spain, all fresh pork and other impacted products from the region affected are restricted. Exports from disease-free areas of Spain can continue as normal.” Review of these measures will occur based on the evolving situation.
According to data from the Spanish non-profit Interporc, Spain is the second-largest pork exporter globally, having shipped 2.7 million tonnes valued at over €8.8 billion ($10.2 billion) last year. During the first nine months of this year, the UK imported approximately 56,000 tonnes of pigmeat products from Spain, reflecting an 11% increase compared to the previous year.
Lizzie Wilson, CEO of the UK’s National Pig Association (NPA), expressed concern regarding the situation in Spain, stating, “This news is of real concern. Obviously, this could have a huge impact on Spanish pig producers, with a knock-on effect on the wider EU and UK pork sectors if Spain faces significant restrictions on exports over a prolonged period. This incident also starkly highlights the huge threat posed by the ASF virus—and its continued ability to pop up anywhere at any time, in this case, as many times before, with humans undoubtedly playing a significant role.”
The UK’s regionalisation strategy aligns with the approach reportedly taken by the European Commission for EU countries. Similarly, China, which initially enacted a blanket ban, has also adopted regionalisation measures based on media reports.
To combat the ASF outbreak, Spain’s Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food has sought assistance from the Commission’s veterinary emergency team and reported the situation to the World Organisation for Animal Health (WOAH). Additionally, hunting has been prohibited in the affected area to curb the movement of wild boars and prevent further spread of the virus. Notably, during inspections of pig farms in close proximity to the infected area, no symptoms or lesions were detected, and all samples tested negative.
