1.   Belgian pig breeders, who suffered severely from an epidemic of swine fever last year, are concerned that the illness might spread.

2.   But unlike mad cow disease, swine fever is not thought to be a threat to humans.

3.   For example, Rob Moormann of the Dutch Institute for Animal Science and Health in Lelystad has created a marker vaccine for classical swine fever.

4.   Growth was hampered by swine fever that cut pork production.

5.   Its license was suspended in May because of an outbreak of swine fever in Spain.

6.   Last year, swine fever socked pig farmers, and rains of Biblical proportions, the worst on record, soaked the rest, destroying crops and property.

7.   On Monday, Belgian Agriculture Minister Karel Pinxten banned imports from the whole of Germany following outbreaks of classical swine fever there during the past week.

8.   Some scientists said they had seen a correlation between swine fever outbreaks and incidents of AIDS in Africa and Haiti.

9.   Swine fever is usually controlled only by the destruction of infected animals.

10.   Swine fever took a half a percentage point off third-quarter growth, according to the statistics agency.