SINGAPORE – Singapore consumers need not steer clear of pork and pork products from Spain, as the Singapore authorities have said that these have not been impacted by the recent African swine fever (ASF) outbreak.

In response to queries from The Straits Times, the Singapore Food Agency (SFA) and the Animal and Veterinary Service (AVS) said in a joint reply on Dec 3 that the current outbreak in Barcelona has not been reported to affect farmed pigs.

“The export of pork and pork products from Spain to Singapore are unaffected by the outbreak,” they added.

However, they noted that “there has been some delay of shipment of pork to Singapore”, adding that the Republic is working with the Spanish authorities to facilitate the shipment.

Spain’s Agriculture Ministry on Nov 28 said that it had

halted all pork exports to China

as a precautionary measure after two wild boars found dead near Barcelona tested positive for the disease for the first time in three decades, Reuters reported.

Spain is the European Union’s leading pork producer, accounting for roughly a quarter of the bloc’s output, ahead of Germany, according to the ministry.

Following this, a number of

countries had reacted to its spread

, including Taiwan, which said on Nov 29 it had banned all pork products and live pig imports, and Britain, which said on Nov 28 it would temporarily stop imports of pork meat from Catalonia.

In their reply, SFA and AVS said that Singapore has a regionalisation arrangement for African swine fever with Spain.