Piglets are held in pens at a modern pig farm in Beijing's Fangshan district, April 30, 2018. (PHOTO / IC)

HONG KONG – Over 900 pigs will be culled at a pig farm in Yuen Long after samples tested positive for the African Swine Flu virus, the Agriculture, Fisheries and Conservation Department said Saturday.

In a statement, the AFCD said it will start culling operations early next week after 19 pigs tested positive for the virus at a licensed pig farm in San Tin, Yuen Long.

AFCD staff will inspect the other eight pig farms within three kilometers of the San Tin farm and will collect pig samples for ASF testing

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“The AFCD has immediately suspended transportation of any pigs from the farm concerned until further notice according to the contingency plan on ASF. The AFCD is arranging culling of all pigs, totaling over 900, on the farm concerned for the sake of prudence,” an AFCD spokesman was quoted as saying in the statement.

AFCD staff will inspect the other eight pig farms within three kilometers of the San Tin farm and will collect pig samples for ASF testing.

“For the sake of prudence, the AFCD has also temporarily suspended movements of pigs on these farms until further notice. No reports of abnormalities from pig farms outside the three-kilometer zone have been received so far,” the spokesman said.

“AFCD staff will visit all local licensed pig farms to ensure biosecurity measures have been properly implemented; and continued close surveillance to detect pigs with abnormalities and if a farm is infected as early as possible," he added.

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The spokesman stressed that ASF is not a zoonotic disease and will not infect humans so it does not pose any food safety risk. He added that the present case does not affect the operation of local slaughterhouses nor the overall supply of live pigs in the city.