Even as the mad
cow mayhem in Europe has
begun subsiding, another
animal disease row is
simmering in this country.
Hog cholera is threatening
Taiwan's US $43 billion pork
industry as well as the
lives of its 10.5 million pigs.
There have been scattered
outbreaks of the disease
in Taiwan's large stockyards
for years. Hog cholera is a
highly contagious disease
that kills pigs suddenly
from high fever and internal
bleeding. According to the
state council of agriculture
estimates, in 1995, cholera
outbreaks forced Taiwan
farmers to kill about 1,100
hogs. By law, hog breeders
must report all cases of
hog cholera infection and
destroy the infected animals.
But certain cases have
come to light when hogs
were prematurely and illegally slaughtered and sold as
pork even after symptoms
were detected. However,
unlike the mad cow disease,
which supposedly causes the
Creutzfeldt- Jacob disease in
humans, pork infected with
hog cholera is not believed to
pose a direct threat to
humans.
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