African Swine Fever spreads across EU, hitting farms and wild boar

The European Union recorded a sharp rise in African Swine Fever (ASF) outbreaks in 2025. According to the EFSA annual report, outbreaks in domestic pig holdings increased by 76% compared with 2024, while infections in wild boar rose 44%. Poland accounted for almost a third of the domestic cases and suffered a large farm infection of 21,390 pigs in the Pomerania region, prompting mass culling under EU protocols. The disease also re‑emerged in Spain after 31 years, and Germany reported numerous infected wild boar carcasses in Saxony and North‑Rhine Westphalia, using thermal‑drone surveys to monitor populations.

Overall, 585 domestic pig outbreaks and 11,036 wild boar incidents were logged across 14 EU member states, with the majority affecting holdings of fewer than 100 animals. The EFSA urges continued intensive surveillance and regional control campaigns, which have shown success in the Czech Republic and southern Italy.