In recent months, Roman authorities have raised concerns that wild boars could spread African swine fever to commercially raised pigs, which could potentially harm jobs in the agricultural industry.
The boars have been in Italy’s capital, Rome, for decades.
Carcasses infected with African swine fever were found in northwestern Italy earlier this year, followed by more recent cases. To eradicate the virus, a government task force created in March set off to reduce the country’s boar population, several million, by fifty percent.
“I don’t see the eradication of the disease as a possibility, unless you bring about a strong reduction of the [boar] population,” says Angelo Ferrari, a government expert addressing the boar crisis. “The thing is, there’s just too many of them.”
The wild boar population in Europe has increased sharply in recent decades. Additionally, their appearances in parks and forested areas in urban centers such as Rome, Berlin, and Barcelona have increased. The problem drew worldwide attention when the singer Shakira and her son were accosted by a pair of wild boars in a Barcelona park in 2021. The boars grabbed her bag and took off into the woods, Shakira said.
As the numbers of boars have grown beyond what predators such as wolves can control, officials plan on eradicating the boars by letting the virus make its way through the boar population. The boars will be contained inside a designated zone near the city center, sealed off by special nets and gates. More than a dozen traps have already been installed outside of Rome’s Great Ring Junction, the orbital motorway circling the city, with more to follow.
Neither vaccine nor treatment of African swine fever has been discovered. The virus kills 98% of all swine infected but does not harm any other organisms.
The threat to the Italian pork industry is huge. Farmers across the country held protests to call for government action. If the disease makes its way into hog farms, pigs raised for meat will have to be mass slaughtered.
The spread of the virus would threaten an industry sector that brings more than 20 billion USD in annual revenue, according to official estimates. “It’s an industry of fundamental import,” says deputy health minister Andrea Costa.
Fear of the virus has already led several countries to impose costly import bans on Italian pork, which have wrought $20 million worth of damage in parts of China, Japan, and other countries.
Despite the mounting economic pressures, animal rights activists fervently reject Italy’s plan.
“Killing them should only be a last resort,” says Roberto Vecchio, head of a local anti-hunting league. He argues that the boars should instead be sterilized and carted off to be set free.
The boars have been in Italy’s capital, Rome, for decades.
Carcasses infected with African swine fever were found in northwestern Italy earlier this year, followed by more recent cases. To eradicate the virus, a government task force created in March set off to reduce the country’s boar population, several million, by fifty percent.
“I don’t see the eradication of the disease as a possibility, unless you bring about a strong reduction of the [boar] population,” says Angelo Ferrari, a government expert addressing the boar crisis. “The thing is, there’s just too many of them.”
The wild boar population in Europe has increased sharply in recent decades. Additionally, their appearances in parks and forested areas in urban centers such as Rome, Berlin, and Barcelona have increased. The problem drew worldwide attention when the singer Shakira and her son were accosted by a pair of wild boars in a Barcelona park in 2021. The boars grabbed her bag and took off into the woods, Shakira said.
As the numbers of boars have grown beyond what predators such as wolves can control, officials plan on eradicating the boars by letting the virus make its way through the boar population. The boars will be contained inside a designated zone near the city center, sealed off by special nets and gates. More than a dozen traps have already been installed outside of Rome’s Great Ring Junction, the orbital motorway circling the city, with more to follow.
Neither vaccine nor treatment of African swine fever has been discovered. The virus kills 98% of all swine infected but does not harm any other organisms.
The threat to the Italian pork industry is huge. Farmers across the country held protests to call for government action. If the disease makes its way into hog farms, pigs raised for meat will have to be mass slaughtered.
The spread of the virus would threaten an industry sector that brings more than 20 billion USD in annual revenue, according to official estimates. “It’s an industry of fundamental import,” says deputy health minister Andrea Costa.
Fear of the virus has already led several countries to impose costly import bans on Italian pork, which have wrought $20 million worth of damage in parts of China, Japan, and other countries.
Despite the mounting economic pressures, animal rights activists fervently reject Italy’s plan.
“Killing them should only be a last resort,” says Roberto Vecchio, head of a local anti-hunting league. He argues that the boars should instead be sterilized and carted off to be set free.
