African swine fever cases cause closure of Rapla County meat producer
A meat producer has announced that it is forced to cease production activities after African swine fever (ASF) was found at a farm it owns.
ASF was on July 26 detected in nearly 4000 pigs at the Petlema farm in Rapla County, owned by Frank Kutter OÜ.
The Agriculture and Food Board (PTA) as a result issued the company an order to halt production in the outbreak zone and to destroy all existing raw materials and products.
While the company said it sought ways to continue operations, confirmation this week that the state will not be compensating Frank Kutter OÜ for halting production and destroying produce, the company must shutter.
"This is an extremely difficult decision, but unfortunately an unavoidable one. We have given our all to find solutions, but due to existing restrictions and the lack of compensation, it is no longer possible to continue the company's operations," Frank Kutter OÜ management board member Johanna Maripuu said.
All 43 employees will be made redundant as a collective redundancy under the Employment Contracts Act, with consultation in cooperation with the Unemployment Insurance Fund (Töötukassa) to be provided to those employees in the coming weeks.
ASF is not contagious to other animal species or to people, though people may spread the disease, for instance on their clothing, equipment or vehicles, if they come into contact with virus-infected materials, and if these items have not been carefully cleaned and then disinfected.
With the recent announcement that over 28,000 pigs are to be slaughtered at one of Estonia's largest pig farms, over 54,650 domestic pigs have or will be slaughtered after being confirmed infected in the current epidemic, which started in late June.
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Editor: Andrew Whyte, Johanna Alvin
