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Chinese Livestock Industry Damaged by Earthquake

May 21, 2008 — 

According to press reports, Chinese agriculture was significantly damaged as a result of the recent earthquake.

Reportedly, 12.5 million food animals have died as a result of the earthquake including 792,000 pigs in Sichuan Province. Sichuan's pig herd totals 60 millions animals. Officials have also expressed concern regarding the increased chance of disease transmission including Classical Swine Fever and PRRS.

[Ed. Note: AASV President-elect Dr. Butch Baker is currently traveling in China and I contacted him by email to ask for a first-hand account. The following is his response:

"I am not in the earthquake area but its effect is everywhere. The Chinese government officials are stunned but have reacted and managed information very well. I stumbled into a 25,000 student and faculty gathering for a moment of silence at Wuhan and it was truly remarkable how cohesive the feeling of remorse that was expressed by all. There was also considerable pride for how the disaster was being handled. The Chinese people are reacting much the same way we did after 9/11. They have great respect for the US and consider us the model for themselves.

While in Wuhan I did have access to some first-hand information from the disaster area. I was meeting with a senior scientist who is the director of the only for-service diagnostic lab in China (swine industry) at Huazhong Agricultural University. He got the call from the government to make recommendations on addressing dead and dying livestock in the earthquake zone while we were meeting. Our conversation immediately changed and we had a great amount of discussion on burning, burying, transport restrictions, tick born issues with Japanese encephalitis, etc. I made several recommendations which he added to his written response to the government officials. He was deployed later that day and is at the earthquake zone now. I have sent him an email but have no response.

Apparently there are many dead and dying livestock there - probably many thousands. They don't know and I haven't seen anything on TV - it is still focused on the recovery of survivors. China TV has shut down all entertainment including all TV channels other than news."]