Meat infected by African swine fever found in UK for first time

Highly contagious virus can live for months in processed meat and would have 'devastating implications' if passed to live pigs

African swine fever has been picked up in meat seized by port authorities in Northern Ireland, the first time the ASF virus has been detected in the UK.

Officials confiscated more than 300kg of illegal meat and dairy products from airport passengers' luggage in June. Samples tested by the Agri-Food and Biosciences Institute in Belfast confirmed traces of the virus, which is highly contagious and can survive for several months in processed meat.