TAIPEI (Taiwan News) — The government suspended the sale of Kinmen pork and pork products to Taiwan and other outlying islands on Thursday after a dead pig found on a Kinmen beach tested positive for African swine fever.
Premier Cho Jung-tai (卓榮泰) announced the measure on Facebook, per CNA. He said the government had instructed the Coast Guard Administration to strengthen efforts against illegal smuggling and the Animal and Plant Health Inspection Kaohsiung Branch to tighten quarantine measures in Kinmen.
Cho said Kinmen County Government had inspected all pig farms within a 10-kilometer radius of the carcass found on a beach in Jinhu Township and found no signs of infection. He emphasized that the government would continue to release updated information as analysis of the virus progresses.
President Lai Ching-te (賴清德) also called on the public to remain vigilant to help Taiwan maintain its African swine fever-free status under the World Animal Health Information System, per UP Media.
The Coast Guard Administration said all refrigerated containers and mailed packages departing from Liaoluo Port, which handles commercial traffic between Kinmen and Taiwan, would be inspected, per Storm Media. It also warned travelers returning to Taiwan or other outlying islands not to bring pork products, as doing so could result in fines.
The Central Emergency Operations Center said the dead pig may have drifted to Kinmen due to strong currents and winds associated with the outer bands of Typhoon Bavi in China, per CNA. The center said the case was the first African swine fever incident in 2026 and the 21st since 2018.
The agriculture ministry said pork and pork products would remain banned from export to Taiwan and other outlying islands until Kinmen remains free of African swine fever for one week, per UDN.
