Death of pig in central Japan blamed on hog cholera

A pig that died at a farm in central Japan's Gifu Prefecture was confirmed Sunday as having been infected by the swine fever virus, also known as hog cholera, which is contagious but does not affect humans.While hog cholera is endemic in Asia, it is the first time an infection has been recorded in Japan since an outbreak in Kumamoto Prefecture in 1992 when five pigs were infected. Japan declared the virus eradicated in 2007.Following the discovery in Gifu Prefecture, the Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries halted pork exports from Japan.The disease affects only pigs and wild boa…READ FULL ARTICLE