Argentina has adopted a new national plan for the prevention and control of Trichinella.
The National Agency for Health and Agri-Food Quality (Senasa) said the move updates regulations for managing the disease across the country.
The aim is to reduce the number of human cases through early detection of animals with parasites and directing sanitary measures in pig farming.
Senasa said the regulatory update is in line with the recommendations of the World Organization for Animal Health (WOAH) and the International Commission on Trichinellosis (ICT).
It includes changes in the process of sending animals for slaughter when an outbreak is discovered and different ways of controlling the disease depending on the sanitary, hygienic and production conditions of each establishment.
In addition to the artificial digestion technique as the official method for detecting the disease in meat for consumption, the new resolution includes the Enzyme Linked Immunosorbent Assay (ELISA) method that can detect specific antibodies against Trichinella larvae.
As part of a self-monitoring system, pig slaughter locations recognized by Senasa must guarantee the diagnosis of Trichinella via a fixed analytical technique.
Examples of outbreaks
Trichinosis is transmitted by eating raw or undercooked pork contaminated with the parasite Trichinella.
From early 2024 to early August, Buenos Aires province reported 157 suspected cases of trichinosis, of which 61 were confirmed, and five outbreaks linked to the consumption of domestically slaughtered products. For the same period in 2023, 96 suspected cases were registered.
In August, health officials in Mendoza province reported two laboratory-confirmed cases of Trichinella spiralis.
Since the first patient was reported in mid-August, officials have identified 21 epidemiologically related cases. However, no common food source was found. Several people had to be hospitalized and one person died. From early 2024 through June, a total of 21 cases had been reported in the province.
In June, at least twenty people became ill in the city of Acebal, Santa Fe province, after eating chorizo from one outlet. Product samples taken at one farm were positive for Trichinella spiralis.
The Santa Fe Food Safety Agency (ASSAl) advised people not to consume products made from raw or undercooked pork or deli meats without labels.
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