China finds new African swine fever case in pigs transported to Sichuan province

[March 12, 2020]  BEIJING (Reuters) - China's agriculture ministry said on Thursday Sichuan province had detected a new African swine fever case in pigs illegally transported from other provinces.

The outbreak, found in Leshan, Sichuan province, on a truck transporting 111 pigs from other provinces, has killed 7 of the herd, according to a statement published on the website of the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs.

The deadly disease, first detected in China in August 2018, has slashed the country's massive hog herd by almost 50%.

(Reporting by Hallie Gu and Tom Daly; Editing by Jan Harvey)

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