Vanuatu moves to keep African swine flu out

Biosecurity Vanuatu is asking people entering Vanuatu not to bring in pig meat from overseas.

Ian Peebles, principal veterinary officer at Biosecurity Vanuatu, said that was part of a border management plan to prevent the highly-contagious African Swine flu from entering the country.

Anyone who visited a farm while overseas must declare that when arriving in Vanuatu, and make sure their clothes and shoes were clean before entering the country.

Once the disease enters Vanuatu, it would be very hard to control because of the way pigs were being moved around there, Dr Peebles said.

The action by border management follows reports of African swine flu in Timor-Leste.

The African swine flu, while harmless to humans, is fatal and highly contagious in pigs.