Unfortunately, the news we never wanted to hear has arrived. In Italy, in particular in Piedmont, the first case of African swine fever, excluding Sardinia where it has been endemic for some time and where it is trying to eradicate it. But what does this mean? What is African swine fever? It is a virus that affects both farmed pigs and wild boars. It is a disease that leads to death on 90% of those affected, has a high morbidity (i.e. a high presence within a population) and spreads very rapidly. It is not dangerous for humans and does not affect other species. Now I don't want to dwell on type of virus or symptoms, but I want to focus on the implications and consequences that this disease can cause.
Italy is in a moment of serious difficulty, this epidemic will have a significant negative impact on the agri-food sector in particular for everything related to the processing of pork. We are, for example, the largest producers and exporters of hams in the world and if, as probable, they should block exports I let you imagine what the consequences will be for all workers in the sector. And this is just one example, as the supply chain is made up of countless activities that you can imagine on your own.
So dear hunting friends, and I say this with a squeeze of my heart, let's try to look beyond the problem of the hunting world, beyond the closed hunting open hunting, beyond our healthy selfishness as enthusiasts; of course, it too has its importance both from a sporting and an economic point of view, but let's examine the problem at 360 degrees. What will the consequences be for our economy? How many jobs will skip? At the moment the institutions are carrying out the first emergency maneuvers, the situation will be better delineated in the coming days, which is constantly evolving. We have to be on their side, we have to respect the rules because if we respect them today, maybe we will have the possibility to go hunting again tomorrow.
It is essential in this first phase not to move for any reason in the territories declared infected and also in the neighboring ones. It is important not to move the fauna. The wild must remain in their areas as much as possible. They should not be disturbed. They don't have to carry the virus around. From tomorrow they will probably be closed ALL activities in the woods, from hunting to hiking in areas declared infected. We respect these rules which are fundamental in order to allow the mapping of cases in the territory and at do not encourage the movement of infected animals or even just transmission vehicles. No alarmism.
Only an awareness of a situation that can have serious consequences for our country. We are not selfish, we do not look for tricks to go hunting, we think about the future. In the next few days there will be communications from the competent bodies, we'll see what they tell us. Please don't read into this epidemic imaginative theses of animal rights conspiracies or such nonsense. PSA is a sad reality that has already been known for some time in Eastern countries and recently also in France and Germany. Let those who have the tools work and see the evolution of the situation. So a few but strict rules:
The discovery of any animal carcass found dead must be reported to the local veterinary service
No walks in the woods
No hunting of any kind
No working with dogs in risk areas
No car rides in the woods
Avoid any activity in infected areas and neighboring areas at risk.
Also implemented the prevention rules that you find in various brochures circulating online these days, even in areas not directly involved.
Hoping to have done something useful and hoping that this epidemic will be limited as much as possible, I thank you for your attention (Daniela Pastorino - Veterinarian Referent Coordination of hunters Federcaccia for Piedmont and Valle d'Aosta).