In Kham village, Chieng Sinh ward, Mrs. Lo Thi Anh's family raised 12 pigs, all of whom became sick and had to be destroyed. The barn is now empty, leaving only the smell of lime powder and disinfectants.
"Immediately after the destruction and implementation of the required quarantine period, my family hopes to soon receive support to reunite. The capital accumulated on the pigs is now gone, and we don't know what to get to rebuild it" - Ms. Anh choked up.
Mr. Quang Van Sieng, On the same day, Chieng Coi ward, shared: On July 4, my familys pigs were infected with African cholera, so all had to be destroyed.
Up to now, the quarantine period has expired but the family does not have capital to re-herd. Hopefully, the upcoming coffee crop will have a good harvest, good prices, and money to rotate to re-herd".
Not only small-scale livestock farms, many farms are also in a state of disrepair. Mr. Nguyen Van Phuong, Pat village, Muong Bu commune, said that the epidemic appeared since the beginning of August.
"Every morning when I enter the barn, I see a few children dying and refusing to eat. My family proactively reported to the local authorities and complied with the destruction of all 83 pigs in the family. Now that I have nothing to do, I still don't know how to handle the bank debt" - Mr. Phuong sadly.
According to statistics, from the beginning of 2025 to now, African swine fever has appeared in nearly 120 villages and residential groups in 31 communes and wards of Son La province. By August 15, the whole province had to destroy more than 3,200 pigs, with a total weight of over 165 tons. Currently, there are still 17 communes with outbreaks less than 21 days.
The main cause is believed to be due to hot and humid weather, prolonged rain, floods carrying objects and infection sources from one place to another, causing the epidemic to spread rapidly and are difficult to control.
African swine fever spread most severely in Muong Bu, Ngoc Chien, Muong La, Chieng Lao communes (in the old Muong La district), causing nearly 1,000 sick pigs to be destroyed, weighing about 40 tons.
Local authorities have set up quarantine posts, providing hundreds of liters of chemicals and tons of lime powder to disinfect barns for households with destroyed pigs.
Mr. Nguyen Ngoc Toan - Head of the Department of Animal Husbandry, Veterinary Medicine and Fisheries of Son La - said: "We have advised on providing more chemicals and lime powder, and at the same time requested the local veterinary unit to strengthen supervision and timely handling when detecting a new outbreak. Livestock households need to strictly implement the 5 principle of not being afraid of epidemics, while encouraging the vaccination of African swine fever - the most effective disease prevention solution today".
Mr. Tran Dung Tien - Deputy Director of the Department of Agriculture and Environment of Son La province - said: "Currently, the work of handling and destroying sick pigs is being strictly implemented such as digging holes, spraying lime, filling the soil, isolating outbreaks according to regulations, not allowing waste and pathogens to enter water sources and spread into the environment.
"We request localities to closely monitor pigs, control transportation and trading, and minimize damage to livestock in localities. At the same time, the province will have a plan to support bio-safe herding, especially in areas where vaccination has been successful". Mr. Tien added.
Currently, Son La province continues to provide additional chemicals and lime powder to localities, while promoting propaganda to raise people's awareness of disease prevention and limit damage. However, for many households raising pigs, barns are devastated, capital is exhausted, the road to re-herding is still very difficult.
