Porcine Epidemic Diarrhea virus (PEDv), a swine virus that can cause death in piglets, has been identified in two hog farms in North Carolina.
The virus has been rapidly spreading across several states in the US since it was first detected in the country in May. Earlier this month, the virus was detected in Arkansas, Kansas and Pennsylvania.
Previously, it was found in Colorado, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, Ohio, Oklahoma and South Dakota.
North Carolina Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services Livestock Health Programs director Dr. Tom Ray was quoted by the Reuters as saying that the virus was detected at a finishing farm where hogs are fattened up for slaughter, and a sow farm, where piglets are born.
The positive tests were confirmed by state and federal veterinarian diagnostic lab researchers.
While PEDv does not seem to affect older pigs, the rate of mortality in pigs four weeks old or younger has ranged from 50% to as high as 100%. However, the virus does not pose any health risk to humans or other animals, and PEDv-infected meat is safe to eat.
The detection of virus in North Carolina has raised concerns as the state has heavy concentration of large sow farms.
North Carolina, which is the second largest sow production state after Iowa, is also the production base for Smithfield Foods. While PEDv has not been detected in Smithfield Foods' farms, the company has unveiled a set of procedures to keep the virus out of its operations.
According to data compiled by the US Department of Agriculture, as of June 22, the virus had spread to 14 states, and nearly 265 cases have tested positive.
Researchers noted that the genetic structure of the strain of the virus detected at US hog farms and slaughterhouses is 99.4% similar to the PEDv that affected China's herds in 2012.
PEDv, which was first detected in China in 2010, has till date killed more than 1 million piglets, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's Emerging Infectious Diseases Journal.
