In case you haven’t seen this story in other publications, Sioux Nation Ag Center is catching customers up with the latest developments.

In May of this year (2025), the World Organisation for Animal Health (WOAH) formally adopted the first global evaluation standard for African swine fever (ASF) vaccines—a major turning point for disease control and international harmonization of vaccine safety. This is big news for swine producers everywhere, as experts across the country have been strategizing, debating, and agonizing over what the most practical plan is for dealing with a potential outbreak of ASF on U.S. soil.

Current Threat of ASF
Most pig producers are aware at this point that ASF is a highly contagious hemorrhagic disease that affects domestic pigs and wild boars, often resulting in a 100% mortality rate. Between January 2022 and February 2025, the virus spread across at least 23 countries and caused the death of more than two million pigs. While this virus has not yet been identified in North America, it was found in sick hogs across Europe, Asia, Africa, and the Caribbean. The most current updates to the Global ASF situation can be found through WOAH at: https://www. woah.org/en/disease/african-swine-fever/. The spread of ASF continues to ‘jump’ around nations and is considered highly contagious. It poses a continued high risk of being introduced into new regions of the world, as it has been found in 11 new regions since 2022, where it had not previously been observed.

International Vaccine Standards
The risk of any disease considered high risk to the U.S. pork industry poses a significant challenge for pig and pork producers, veterinarians, and state and federal animal health officials. At the live animal level, anything that is available to prevent the onset of illness and the need for veterinary intervention improves both the productive success of the pigs and the dollars in your pocket. To that end, the development of an ASF vaccine brings the global pork community one step closer to breathing more freely, as vaccine standards newly established by WOAH set minimum criteria for approval. The criteria emphasize three core principles:
• Proven efficacy to reduce clinical disease, virus shedding, and mortality.
• Demonstrated safety without persistent illness, environmental risks, or the presence of wild-type ASF virus.
• Specific genotype matching to local ASF strains to prevent recombination and the emergence of new virus variants.

Gregorio Torres, head of WOAH’s Science Department, emphasized the significance of these standards, saying they ‘provide the first-ever international guide to evaluating ASF vaccines and ensuring only safe, effective products reach markets’. When vaccines finally become available, each nation will still decide on vaccination implementation based on recommendations from veterinary experts on outbreaks, logistics, and capacity, with post-vaccine monitoring and exit strategies. Although ASF has not yet been detected in U.S. herds, American stakeholders actively participated in WOAH sessions, and the new vaccine standard offers a framework for preparedness and future U.S. regulatory decisions.

Vaccination is still part of a Broader Strategy
WOAH’s landmark decision brings international clarity, transparency, and scientific rigor to ASF vaccine development. Vaccination is only part of the strategy that has been encouraged for global pig operations thus far. Strict biosecurity, solid movement records, and continued surveillance are still paramount to minimize the spread and reduce negative market impacts of a positive case in the U.S. swine market. Vaccine standards mark a key step toward protecting pig herds and securing global food systems.

Further reading opportunities
• National Hog Farmer. (2025, May 29). African swine fever control advances with new vaccine standards. https://www.nationalhogfarmer.com/livestock-management/african-swine-fever-control-advances-with-new-vaccine-standards
• Pig Progress. (2025, May 31). WOAH: Global ASF vaccine standard adopted. https://www.pigprogress.net/health-nutrition/health/woah-global-asf-vaccine-standard-adopted
• World Organisation for Animal Health [WOAH]. (2025a, May 27). African swine fever: WOAH vaccine standard adopted. https://www.woah.org/en/article/african-swine-fever-woah-vaccine-standard-adopted/
• World Organisation for Animal Health [WOAH]. (2025b, June 11). ASF: WOAH stresses the importance of using high-quality vaccines that comply with newly adopted standard. https://www.woah.org/en/asf-woah-stresses-the-importance-of-using-high-quality-vaccines-thatcomply-with-newly-adopted-standard/