Knowledge Transfer

VSF Italia’s Workshop: Impact of ASF – African Swine Fever on indigenous swine breeds and backyard farms in Eastern EU Countries

On 29 and 30 June, 2023 VSF Italia, held a workshop in Sofia, Bulgaria titled: “Impact of ASF – African Swine Fever on indigenous swine breeds and backyard farms in Eastern EU Countries” financed by the Defend2020 project.

The two day workshop was available to join in person and key partners included:

• producer associations
• Bulgarian authority
• Friedrich-Loeffler-Institut
• Scientific authorities
• European institutions
•  In addition to this, some representatives of other project partners and Multi Action Panel (MAP) joined the meeting online.

VSF Italy played a role in investigating the dynamics underpinning the impact of ASF in the case of an EU MS community of farmers which represents the domestic biodiversity heritage and faces unprecedented threats to the extinction of a rare key indigenous pig breed: the East Balkan Swine (EBS).

The WS promoted networking and allowed the possibility to face the problem from different angles and promote knowledge transfer between the consortium partners and with similar realities in other EU and non-EU countries (e.g., a representative of Serbian veterinary services was invited as speaker).

The discussion between these groups, mediated by VSF Italia, has highlighted how, in some countries, they are not prepared against the risk of a serious epidemic in which African swine fever persists and the impact this will have on indigenous breeds and their survival.

The final report (in English) is available to download here: https://drive.google.com/file/d/14ehnAvd5DR3em7guoYdPlDlixQ8j3oZt/view?usp=drive_link and a Bulgarian version will be added shortly. Both reports will be shared with all the participants, reaching more than 100 people.

They concluded that addressing ASF control, whilst simultaneously protecting biodiversity, breeders and animal welfare, can only be achieved through cooperation between different professional profiles.

Images are copyright of Alessandro Cristalli, VSF Italia