Regional African Swine Fever (ASF) Wild Boar Management Workshop
Hybrid Event, 21/05/2019 - 23/05/2019
African swine fever (ASF) is a contagious viral disease of pigs and wild boar that causes severe economic losses to the pig sector. Originally restricted to Africa, ASF was introduced into Georgia in 2007, from where it progressively spread westwards (reaching Eastern and Central Europe) and eastwards. The disease was reported in Bulgaria, Hungary and Romania in 2018, seriously threatening the Balkans. Based on experience, in Europe, the wild boar plays a crucial role in the maintenance and the spread of the disease.
In order to enhance awareness and technical knowledge on the management of the disease in wild boar populations, the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), with the financial support of the Czech Republic, is organizing a Regional ASF Wild Boar Management Workshop.
Language: English with translation to Serbian
Objectives:
The objective of the workshop is to bring together experts from the Czech Republic along with other country experts and wild boar specialist to discuss and share practical knowledge about ASF and the specific surveillance, prevention and control measures in wild boar populations.
Participants:
- Representatives of the veterinary, forestry, hunting and academia from the Balkan region
- Experts from Czech Republic, Enetwild and Minuartia
- Representatives from FAO, World Organisation for Animal Health (OIE) and European Food Safety Authority (EFSA)
The workshop will have both a theoretical part focusing on presentations and open discussion, and a practical part focusing on sampling and biosecurity at a hunting ground.
Day 1 covered: Activities of FAO, EFSA and ENETWILD; current ASF situation in Europe; epidemiology of ASF; experience from countries who regained freedom (Czech Republic), presentations from participating countries and strategy of the European Union on wild boar.
Day 2 started with further presentations on: Activities of OIE; experience of infected countries (Georgia, Russian Federation, Ukraine, Hungary and Lithuania) followed by a round table discussion. After lunch, presentations were given on wild boar biology-ecology, searching for wild boar carcasses; use of fences to prevent the movement of wild boar; hunting strategies and overview on methodologies to prevent transmission from wild boar to domestic pigs.
Day 3 was a field day on a hunting ground in Karakusa, Vojvodina, where demonstration were given on: hunting biosecurity, sampling and storage of the carcasses. Abundant pictures and videos were recorded for future trainings and demonstrations. Second half of the day continued with a small exercise on ASF in wild boar concluded by presenting the outcomes.
Presentations
FAO activities on African swine fever
Daniel Beltran-Alcrudo, Animal Health Officer, FAO Regional Office for Europe and Central Asia
On-going activities on African swine fever
Sotiria-Eleni Antoniou and Laura C. Gonzalez Villeta, EFSA Animal Health Animal Welfare Team
Activities of ENETWILD
Karolina Petrović, Mammal Research Institute Polish Academy of Sciences, ENETWILD consortium
ASF - current situation in Europe
Mark Hovari, Animal Health Preparedness Expert, FAO Regional Office for Europe and Central Asia
Introduction to African swine fever
Daniel Beltran-Alcrudo, Animal Health Officer, FAO Regional Office for Europe and Central Asia
ASF in the Czech Republic: management experience and lessons learnt
Petr Vaclavek, NRL for ASF and CSF, State Veterinary Institute Jihlava
ASF in the Czech Republic: Sampling and laboratory diagnostics
Petr Vaclavek, NRL for ASF and CSF, State Veterinary Institute Jihlava
Strategy of the European Union on wild boar
Marius Masiulis, International Expert on Wild Boar Management, FAO
The role of OIE in the global control of African Swine Fever
Dr Budimir Plavsic, OIE Regional Representative. Head of RR in Moscow
African Swine Fever Situation in Georgia
Otar Parkadze, Head of EDP Division
ASF experience in the Russian Federation – focus on wild boar
Nikita Lebedev, Adviser to the Head, Federal Service for Veterinary and Phytosanitary Surveillance
Emergency Response from a country’s perspective: Managing ASF outbreaks and preparedness in Ukraine, focus on wild boar
Revnivtsev Aleksandr, National Consultant, FAO
African swine fever in Hungary
Mark Hovari, Animal Health Preparedness Expert, FAO Regional Office for Europe and Central Asia
African swine fever in Lithuania
Marius Masiulis, International Expert on Wild Boar Management, FAO
Wild boar ecology
Marius Masiulis, International Expert on Wild Boar Management, FAO
Wild boar: population estimation and searching for wild boar carcasses
Jan Cukor, Forestry and game management research institute
Alternative sampling and diagnostic tools facing the challenge of wild boar carcasses
Laura Zani, Federal Research Institute for Animal Health
Can fences stop wild boar movement across the landscape?
Carme Rosell, MINUARTIA, Facultat Biologia - Universitat Barcelona
Different hunting strategies
Marius Masiulis, International Expert on Wild Boar Management, FAO
Preventing transmission of ASF between domestic pigs and wild boar
Laura Zani, Federal Research Institute for Animal Health
Before, during and after the hunt
Marius Masiulis, International Expert on Wild Boar Management, FAO
Persistence of African swine fever virus in environment and the effect of chemical disinfectants
Jana Prodělalová, Veterinary Research Institute Department of Virology
Regional Presentations