LONDON (Reuters) -Britain said on Friday it would temporarily stop imports of pork meat from parts of Spain after the country confirmed its first cases of African swine fever in just over three decades.
Britain is one of Spain's main customers for pork, and the move comes as authorities in Madrid activated emergency measures in Catalonia, a region central to pig farming.
"Following an outbreak of African Swine Fever in Spain, all fresh pork and other affected products from Spain will be held at Border Control Posts until further notice," Britain's environment department (DEFRA) said in a statement.
"We will continue to monitor the situation and keep all measures under review," it added.
Spain exported 37,600 metric tons of fresh and frozen pork to Britain so far in 2025, worth over 112 million euros ($129.93 million), up 17% in volume and 9.5% in value compared with all of 2024, according to data from the government-backed body the Agriculture and Horticulture Development Board.
The virus is a highly contagious disease that affects pigs and wild boar but poses no risk to humans. It has no vaccine or cure and often leads to mass culling when detected in farmed herds.
The disease has spread westwards in Europe in recent years, disrupting pork markets and prompting trade bans. Germany's outbreak in 2020 led to sweeping restrictions from major buyers such as China, while Croatia has battled infections in recent months.
Spain, the European Union's top pork producer, has so far avoided the virus in domestic pigs since 1994, making the latest detection in wild boar near Barcelona a significant concern for its 8-billion-euro ($9.28 billion) pork industry and export markets.
Britain's government earlier this year banned personal imports of ham and other meat and dairy products from all EU countries to prevent the spread of foot-and-mouth disease, following a rising number of cases.
($1 = 0.8620 euros)
(Reporting by Disha Mishra, Kanjyik Ghosh in Bengaluru and Sam Tabahriti in London; Editing by Chris Reese)
LATEST POSTS
- 1
Planet-eating stars hint at Earth's ultimate fate - 2Presenting Nintendo's New Pastel Satisfaction Con Tones for Switch Gamers: 3 Upscale Choices
- 3Israeli president concerned over proposed renaming of park
- 4Outside Lovers' Decision: Favored Climbing Rucksacks
- 5Hezbollah sees potential win as Israel backs down from disarmament goal
- A trip to Colombia in my 20s turned into 8 years freelancing in South America. Here's what I'd do differently.
- The Craft of Computerized Detox: Individual Trials
- The most effective method to Stay away from Normal Traps While Recruiting a Material Organization
- I visited the largest collection of public telescopes in the US in Oregon's high desert, and the dark skies blew me away
- Ukrainian man arrested in Germany on suspicion of spying for Russia
- Watch Blue Origin's huge New Glenn rocket ace its epic landing on a ship at sea (video)
- Defence chiefs of Thailand and Cambodia to discuss ceasefire
- Picking Your Next SUV: 4 Brands Offering Execution, Solace, and Wellbeing
- The Force of Systems administration: Individual Examples of overcoming adversity
