China bans pork imports due to Ebola
China has banned imports of Philippine pork products after the island country reported finding the Ebola-Reston virus in four pig herds on its Luzon Island at the end of 2008, the Chinese news agency Xinhua reports.
All pork products from the Philippines already at Chinese ports should be turned back or destroyed, the General Administration of Quality Supervision, Inspection and Quarantine (GAQSIQ) announced on Wednesday.
Delivery and travellers
GAQSIQ also said no to pigs or pork products coming to China via delivery and travellers. Pork products found on foreign ships, planes or trains staying in the country will be frozen.
At the same time, the administration urged people from Philippines having symptoms such as fever, muscle pain, blood loss or fetter to report to quarantine institutes and seek medical help as soon as possible.
Four types
Ebola virus, first found in the 1960s, has four types. It could communicate among people via sweat, blood and saliva and cause fevers with a death rate over 80%. There has been few reports of human deaths from Ebola-Reston type so far.
It was the first time the lethal Ebola-Reston virus was discovered in livestock.
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