8.6 Illegal import of contaminated pork and pork products
There is a greater chance of introduction of disease like ASF when contaminated pork and pork products are illegally imported from other countries for personal consumption or commercial purpose. Pathogens like ASFV are particularly challenging due to their prolonged infectiousness in pork products (Adkin et al., 2004). The porous international borders particularly in the NE region of India and migration of live pigs or illegal imports from the neighbouring countries like Myanmar, Nepal, Bhutan or China will make the country vulnerable for transboundary diseases (dahd.nic.in). Therefore, strict monitoring protocols should be sufficiently timed to detect transboundary movement of live animals or products to minimize the associated risk of hazards/pathogens.