THE country yesterday confirmed a new case of African swine fever in Nanping City, Fujian Province, according to the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs.

Of 5,776 pigs in Nanping’s Yanping District, 35 were confirmed infected with the viral disease and 11 had died, the ministry said, citing a China Animal Disease Control Center report released yesterday morning. Local authorities have initiated an emergency response to block, cull and disinfect all of the affected pigs.

African swine fever is a highly contagious, viral disease that infects pigs but not humans or other animals. China reported its first case of the disease in August in Liaoning Province. Later outbreaks were reported in other provincial regions. (Xinhua)