Control room
It was held on Thursday 26 February at the headquarters of Province of Piacenza The African Swine Fever Control Room, convened by the Emilia-Romagna Region and chaired by Monica Patelli, President of the Province of Piacenza, was attended by Giovanni Filippini, the Special Commissioner for African Swine Fever; Alessio Mammi, the Regional Councillor for Agriculture and Agri-food, Hunting and Fishing, and EU Relations; Massimo Fabi, the Regional Councillor for Health Policies; and the regional and local veterinary service and all the institutional and private entities affected by the emergency.
Restriction areas
Davide Marenghi, Director of the Provincial Police Service, and Provincial Police Commander Matteo Re shared the latest updates on the management of African Swine Fever (ASF) in light of Commission Implementing Regulation (EU) 2026/229 of 26 January 2026, which redefines territorial zoning. Based on the European provision, the Piacenza municipalities are distributed across the various restricted areas as follows:
• Free Area: Monticelli d'Ongina, Castelvetro Piacentino, Villanova sull'Arda
• ZR1: Besenzone, Caorso, San Pietro in Cerro, Cortemaggiore, Calendasco, Piacenza (north of the A21 and A1)
• ZR2: Large list of municipalities including Vernasca, Bobbio, Fiorenzuola d'Arda, Carpaneto Piacentino, Piacenza and many others
Furthermore, in light of the indications of the Commissioner's Office:
• CEV Zone – Containment of Viral Expansion: including San Giorgio Piacentino, Podenzano, Pontenure, Piacenza, Cortemaggiore, Caorso, Rottofreno and others
• Wild boar density reduction area of the Northern Italy cluster: Monticelli d'Ongina, Castelvetro Piacentino, Villanova sull'Arda
The downgrading of the territory
Specifically, the downgrading of the Piacenza area from ZR3 to ZR2 was highlighted, a result made possible by the absence of outbreaks in pigs held in the last three months and the effectiveness of the control measures adopted at the regional and national level in accordance with the provisions of EU Regulation 2025/2388 of 24 November 2025. The results of the depopulation activities for the year 2025 were also presented. During the last PSA Steering Committee, in fact, the Extraordinary Commissioner Dr. Giovanni Filippini had urged continued vigilance, and the Piacenza area responded with significant action to this request, recording particularly significant results in the year just ended:
• 1785 control interventions
• 7.878 operators involved
• 720 heads slaughtered, of which 32 in the Park territory
• +35,86% of culls compared to 2024 (530 heads) thanks to the collaboration of the Territorial Hunting Areas.
• several capture devices are also operational in the area (Pig Brig Trap Systems, ministerial nylon nets and metal mandrioli), positioned to contain the spread of ASF towards the North and East.
Strategies for 2026
As announced in the latest Steering Committee meeting last year, an agreement was signed at the end of 2025 between the Piacenza Local Health Authority and the Piacenza Province ATCs for passive surveillance throughout the province, including the recovery of carcasses found in the restricted zone pursuant to Regulation (EC) No. 594/2023 as part of the Swine Fever emergency. Finally, the 2026 strategies were outlined. For the January–March 2026 quarter, at the instigation of the regional GOT and with the authorization of the Commissioner's Office, a new, more effective control strategy has been launched in the provinces of Piacenza and Parma. This strategy also includes interventions in the CEV Zone using an ENCI-certified swine dog, a handler, and 10 trained operators. This approach has already proven effective. In January 2026 alone, 74 culls were recorded, a 32,14% increase compared to the same month in 2025. Operations, slowed down in February due to heavy rainfall, are now resuming regularly (source: Province of Piacenza).
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