African swine fever - Hesse is struggling with a decline in the number of cases!

African swine fever - Hesse is struggling with a decline in the number of cases!

An important dialogue event on African swine fever (ASF) took place in Ober-Ramstadt today. Michael Ruhl, State Secretary in the Hessian Ministry of Agriculture and the Environment, informed those present about the current status of the epidemic in Hesse. “The beginning has been made,” explained Ruhl optimistically, but made it clear that the ASP will keep Hesse busy for a long time, as the situation remains tense.

The number of cases is currently declining: only seven cases have been reported in the Darmstadt-Dieburg district in the last six weeks. According to Ruhl, Hesse is now in the elimination phase of the epidemic, with the clear goal of keeping a white zone around the core areas free of wild boars. “Our goal is to have zero wild boars in the core areas,” the State Secretary continued.

Wild boar control activities

A glimmer of hope for wild boar control is the upcoming driven hunts, which are planned until January. These are intended to help reduce the wild boar population. In addition, there are already initial positive developments: parts of the white zone on federal highway 38 are now wild boar-free. In order to stabilize this success, fences are being erected for the white zone on federal highway 26, and route preparation for an A5 zone has already begun.

There is also a financial incentive for those entitled to hunt: the district pays a shooting bonus of 200 euros for each wild boar shot. In the last few months, 1,364 such bonuses have already been paid out, resulting in around 1,700 wild boars being shot. The financial resources for disease control are also impressive: last year 1.283 million euros were invested, and by October of this year 1.4 million euros had already flowed into this measure.

An appeal to the hunters

In view of the impending danger from ASF, the State Secretary appeals to hunters: “Show solidarity with the companies that keep pigs and remove wild boars.” Even though the number of positive cases in the district is high with a total of 407 cases, there is an encouraging decline; after all, there have only been seven positive reports in the last six weeks. However, one worrying event remains in the memory: 60 dead pigs were once found in one weekend.

The last press conference and the upcoming hunting season give cause for hope. Hesse has the opportunity to sustainably combat the disease in the region and protect domestic pig farming. With committed measures and a joint approach, the region is well positioned to achieve the goal of an ASF-free zone.