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New legislation aims to help protect U.S. from African swine fever

New legislation aims to help protect U.S. from African swine fever By Ag Daily According to the World Health Organization, more than 40 countries have reported the deadly virus either in wild or domestic pigs during the past five years. President Donald Trump signed legislation this week that will increase protection of the U.S. pork industry from the threat of African swine fever. The National Pork Producers Council released a statement thanking Trump for signing into law on Tuesday legislation (S. 2107) that authorizes funding for 720 new agricultural inspectors at land, air, and sea ports to prevent African swine fever and other foreign animal diseases from entering the United States. Providing additional agricultural inspectors represents a top priority for NPPC. “Ensuring we have enough agricultural inspectors at our borders is critical to maintaining a healthy U.S. swine herd,” said NPPC President David Herring, a hog farmer from Lillington, North Carolina. “The U.S. Department of Agriculture and the Bureau of Customs and Border Protection have done much to mitigate the risk to animal disease. Bolstered by this legislation, even more resources will be available to strengthen biosecurity at our borders. This is a victory for farmers, consumers and the American economy,” he said. Source: news@lfbf.org