Classical swine fever: the global situation

A historical and current perspective is given of classical swine fever and its impact on pig production in different regions of the world. Data were o btained from a variety of sources including returns to the Office Internati onal des Epizooties, official government reports, other published material and local information through personal contacts. The disease has been recog nized for about 170 years and efforts to control it by official interventio n began in the nineteenth century. Despite this it remains a lingering prob lem in many parts of the world where it has both, an economic impact on swi ne production and a constraining effect on trade due to the measures necess ary to prevent spread. (C) 2000 Elsevier Science B.V. All rights reserved.