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
South Carolina confirms 124 new measles cases as outbreak on the Arizona-Utah line grows - 2Mars spacecraft images pinpoint comet 3I/ATLAS's path with 10x higher accuracy. This could help us protect Earth someday
- 3This St Nick Truly Can Advise How To Drink And Hack Your Headache
- 4One of the best meteor showers of the year peaks at the worst possible time this week
- 5Is new Harry Styles music on the way? Fans think so, after a cryptic website and posters pop up.
- I binged all 24 Hallmark Christmas movies in less than 30 days. I emerged a changed man.
- Ethiopian earthquakes and volcanic eruptions: earth scientist explains the link
- the Kinds of Thailand: Decision in favor of Your Number one Thai Dish!
- The most effective method to Engage in Local area Making arrangements for 5G Pinnacle Establishments
- Curl Up With Some Hot Chocolate And Watch Mighty Car Mods Explore Japan In A Honda City Turbo II
- An Investigate of 6 Creative Specialty Mixed drinks
- 5 Morning Schedules That Stimulate Your Day
- Step by step instructions to Think about Disc Rates Across Various Banks
- Latvia seeks emergency UN meeting over Russian missile attack on Lviv
