Photo: FW Archive
“The pig quarantine site at Erf 1148 [Bredasdorp Informal Settlement] remains secured and monitored 24/7 by municipal protection services, with law enforcement personnel enforcing strict biosecurity controls,” the Cape Agulhas Municipality said in a statement.
“Given the pending confirmation of ASF and the proximity of the Nampo Cape event [10 to 13 September], continued 24/7 monitoring must remain in place, [and] no movement of live pigs from the encampment may be allowed.”
Sources indicated that they were still awaiting final test results from the Onderstepoort veterinary laboratory to confirm whether it was ASF, but the symptoms and rapid spread suggested it was the most probable cause.
The quarantine has been in place since the afternoon of 30 July after 22 pig carcasses were discovered in and around a pig enclosure adjacent to the informal settlement. The deaths were reported to the municipality, and officials found another two dead pigs at the scene, bringing the day’s the tally to 24.
By 6 August, the number of fatalities had ballooned to 164, and sources at the site told Farmer’s Weekly the tally was 330 after the weekend that followed.
The municipality said officials were maintaining a strong presence and patrolling the surrounding areas and towns to establish whether pigs outside of the quarantine zone were also ill.
It added that it was working closely with the Western Cape Department of Agriculture’s Veterinary Services, the Animal Anti-Cruelty League Bredasdorp, and Humane World for Animals to manage the suspected outbreak, with a series of measures already in place to contain it.
“Only registered pig owners may enter to feed animals under controlled conditions. All individuals exiting the site are disinfected. No pigs or pig products may leave the area,” the municipality said.
Animal welfare representatives were also on site to see to the animal’s well-being and ensure humane culling took place as required.
Biosecurity measures implemented at the site included liming the soil at the entrance to the control area, sanitising the shoes of everyone passing through with a recommended disinfectant, and applying lime to the soil where dead pigs were buried.
For pig owners, the outbreak represents a significant loss of income. The town is home to a significant number of up-and-coming pig farmers producing on rented land with the municipality’s consent.
However, for those keeping pigs in their backyards, the animals are also an important source of income, even though they often escape, wander the streets, and occasionally get onto commercial farmers’ grazing land.
Mary James, head of communications at the Western Cape Department of Agriculture, said that because ASF was endemic to the Western Cape, biosecurity was crucial to keep pigs healthy, irrespective of herd size or scale of farming operation.
“While ASF poses no risk to human health and pork products remain safe to eat, the disease threatens pig health and can impact market access, with serious economic consequences for the sector and the province,” she explained.
James added that any breach of quarantine regulations was a criminal offence under the Animal Diseases Act (No. 35 of 1984) and could lead to prosecution.
UPDATE 13 August 2025
According to Dr Thandi Chiappero, head of consumer assurance at the South African Pork Producers’ Organisation, the presence of ASF in Bredasdorp was confirmed on 12 August.
“The symptoms of ASF are distinctive, especially if you’ve encountered it often, as is the case with veterinary services in that area. And along with the fact that the disease is highly contagious, a diagnosis would have had to be treated as positive to prevent it from spreading,” she told Farmer’s weekly.
Chiappero added that biosecurity on commercial pig farms was strict to prevent herds from being affected by ASF outbreaks.
