Thailand Suspends Pig Imports from Finland and Hungary for 90 Days

Thailand has imposed a temporary suspension on the importation or transit of live domestic pigs, wild pigs, and their carcasses from Finland and Hungary to prevent the spread of African Swine Fever under emergency animal health measures

Thailand’s Department of Livestock Development has stopped imports and transit of pigs, wild boar and their carcasses from Hungary from Aug. 21, 2026, and from Finland from Sept. 23, 2026, for 90 days each¹.

The department runs Thailand’s animal border posts and quarantine. Its bans came after African swine fever, a deadly virus disease of pigs with no vaccine, was found in both countries².

In short, Thailand will not let live pigs, wild boar or pig carcasses from Finland or Hungary enter or pass through the country for three months. A shipment of these goods from either country that arrives during the ban cannot clear the Thai border.

What has Thailand suspended for Finland and Hungary?

The department’s list of import suspensions for 2026 names two separate notices. One covers pigs, wild boar, pig carcasses and wild boar carcasses from the Republic of Hungary. The other covers the same goods from the Republic of Finland¹.

Each notice is titled as a suspension of "import or transit through the Kingdom". So the ban covers goods that would only cross Thailand on the way to another country, as well as goods for sale in Thailand¹.

The department’s list does not give customs codes. It does not name any product that is left out of the ban¹.

When do the Finland and Hungary bans start and end?

The two notices were issued about one month apart. Each runs for 90 days¹.

The dates on the department’s list are:

• Hungary: notice dated Aug. 20, 2026; in force from Aug. 21, 2026, to Nov. 18, 2026¹.
• Finland: notice dated Sept. 22, 2026; in force from Sept. 23, 2026, to Dec. 21, 2026¹.

In both cases the ban began the day after the notice was signed. That left exporters almost no time to ship goods before the start¹.

Where has African swine fever appeared?

The titles on the Thai list do not state a reason for the bans¹. Both bans followed reports of African swine fever in Europe. The Finnish Food Authority, Finland’s food and animal health agency, says the virus was first found in Finland on July 30, 2026³.

It was found by testing wild boar that had been found dead in Virolahti, in the south-east of the country. The result was confirmed by the European Union’s reference laboratory for the disease³.

The UK’s Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra) wrote an early report on the case. It said the remains were found less than 2 km from the Russian border. It added that this was the first time the disease had been detected in Finland⁴.

For Hungary, the Finnish Food Authority’s travel guidance lists Hungary among the EU countries where African swine fever has been detected². The Thai list does not give the details of the Hungarian cases¹.

How fast has the disease spread in Finland?

The Finnish Food Authority keeps a public table of confirmed cases in wild boar. Its total stood at 49 findings by its update of Sept. 30, 2026³.

The case numbers rose month by month. The table lists 2 cases in July, 33 in August and 13 in September. Most were in Virolahti, with later finds in Lappeenranta, Miehikkälä and Pyhtää³.

The Finnish agency set up an infected zone on July 30, 2026, and widened it on Aug. 28, 2026. It added a further restricted zone on Sept. 10, 2026³. Inside these zones, hunting and other outdoor work that could move wild boar or spread the virus is limited³.

Defra said the main worry was that the virus could spread from wild boar to Finland’s farm pigs⁴. All the cases in the Finnish table are in wild boar³.

Why does Thailand ban the whole country?

The European Union deals with the disease by drawing zones. Finland’s own rules ban pig meat from the affected areas only, and these areas are set by EU Commission decisions².

Thailand’s notices do not follow these zones. They name the whole of Finland and the whole of Hungary¹. A pig farm far from Virolahti is treated the same as one inside the infected zone.

The Finnish agency itself warns that the disease spreads fast and that decisions on the zones "lag behind the actual situation"². The virus also survives freezing and low cooking heat. It can travel in smoked or air-dried meat². These facts explain why a buyer country may choose a wide ban over a zone-by-zone approach.

Is this a new step or part of a pattern?

Thailand uses the same 90-day notice often. Its 2026 list shows pig bans for Spain, Poland, Germany, Italy, India, Indonesia, the Philippines and South Korea, among others¹.

Many of these are renewed when they run out. India and Italy, for example, each have notices from February, May and August 2026. Each new 90-day period starts close to the end of the last one¹.

The list also shows bans on other animals. Poultry from the United States, South Africa, Poland and Hungary appear, along with cattle and buffalo from Turkey¹. The Hungary pig ban is the first pig notice for Hungary on the 2026 list. The Finland notice is the first for Finland¹.

Who is affected by the pig import ban?

The ban reaches several groups:

• Exporters in Finland and Hungary cannot sell live pigs, wild boar or carcasses to Thai buyers while it lasts.
• Thai importers cannot bring these goods in from either country while the notices are in force.
• Shipping and logistics firms cannot route these goods through Thailand to a third country.
• Thai animal border posts must stop and refuse any such shipment that arrives.

The department runs 59 animal quarantine stations across the country¹. These posts carry out the checks at the border. Its rules also control how pigs and carcasses move inside Thailand’s own disease watch zones⁵.

The notices name only the countries of origin. Pigs and carcasses from other European countries not on the list are not caught by these two notices¹.

What happens after the 90 days?

The Hungary notice ends on Nov. 18, 2026, and the Finland notice on Dec. 21, 2026¹. On the pattern of the 2026 list, the department can issue a new 90-day notice when one ends¹.

Whether it does so for Finland and Hungary is not stated. The Finnish table was still adding cases at the end of September, with four new finds on Sept. 30, 2026³.

The department says the notices can also be found in the Royal Gazette, Thailand’s official journal¹.

Key points on Thailand’s pig ban for Finland and Hungary

The two notices work the same way and differ only in their dates.

The next date is Nov. 18, 2026, when the Hungary notice runs out. Until then, no pig or pig carcass from Hungary can enter or cross Thailand. Shipments from Finland stay blocked until at least Dec. 21, 2026¹.

Sources

1. ↩ ประกาศชะลอการนำเข้าหรือนำผ่านราชอาณาจักร ปี 2569 – กองสารวัตรและกักกัน กรมปศุสัตว์ https://aqi-new.dld.go.th/index.php/th/news-head/announcedld
2. ↩ Do not bring African swine fever to Finland – Finnish Food Authority https://www.ruokavirasto.fi/en/animals/animal-health-and-diseases/animal-diseases/pigs/african-swine-fever-asf/do-not-bring-african-swine-fever-to-finland/
3. ↩ ASF in Finland 2026 – Finnish Food Authority https://www.ruokavirasto.fi/en/animals/animal-health-and-diseases/animal-diseases/pigs/african-swine-fever-asf/asf-in-finland-2026/
4. ↩ ASF in Europe Updated Outbreak Assessment #35 https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/media/6a747e1df23cedd3e1366231/ASF_in_Finland_Aug_2026.pdf
5. ↩ ระเบียบกรมปศุสัตว์ – กองสารวัตรและกักกัน กรมปศุสัตว์ https://aqi-new.dld.go.th/index.php/th/laws/dld-regulations