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Finland Recorded Its First African Swine Fever Cases in Wild Boar

Close view of a free-ranging wild boar in woodland
Conservation: Threats · Research: Disease, parasites & microbiology

African swine fever (ASF) was detected in Finland for the first time after the remains of three dead wild boar piglets (Sus scrofa) were found close together at Vaalimaa in Virolahti, southeastern Finland. The Finnish Food Authority detected viral genetic material by PCR on 30 July 2026 and announced the finding the following day. The EU reference laboratory later confirmed Finland’s first ASF cases.

Whole-genome sequencing, which compares genetic information across the virus genome, placed it in ASFV genotype II, genetic group 3. The same genetic group has been reported elsewhere in eastern and central Europe, but the Finnish Food Authority states that the genetic analysis cannot determine how the virus entered Finland.

An infected zone and a stricter core area were established around the first detections, with searches for dead wild boar, laboratory testing and measures intended to reduce the risk of spreading contaminated material or disturbing wild boar out of the area. The infected zone was expanded westwards on 28 August after an ASF-positive adult wild boar was found at Hirvikoski in Pyhtää, about 40 kilometres beyond the previous boundary.

The outbreak continued after the initial July cases. In its current case table, last updated on 17 September, the Finnish Food Authority lists 38 ASF-positive wild boar in Finland. Most detections were in Virolahti; the Pyhtää case marked the major westward expansion, and the most recent listed detection was in Miehikkälä on 15 September.

Sources and image credit

  1. Finnish Food Authority. (2026, July 31). African swine fever detected in Southeastern Finland.Primary official announcement of Finland’s first ASF detection. The virus was detected by PCR in dead wild boar from Virolahti on 30 July and announced on 31 July.
  2. Finnish Food Authority. (2026, August 10). African swine fever (ASF) Test Results Confirmed by the EU Reference Laboratory.Official confirmation by the EU reference laboratory. Whole-genome sequencing placed the virus in genotype II, genetic group 3; the sequence data could not determine the route of introduction.
  3. Finnish Food Authority. ASF in Finland 2026.Current official case table, last updated 17 September 2026. Lists 38 ASF-positive wild boar in Finland, including the Pyhtää detection that led to westward expansion of the infected zone and the latest listed case in Miehikkälä on 15 September.

Image: Richard Bartz — wild boar in Grünwalder Forst, Bavaria, Germany, 22 May 2007. Source: Wikimedia Commons. CC BY-SA 2.5. Representative healthy individual; not an animal from the Finnish outbreak. · CC BY-SA 2.5 · Source

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