The Ministry of Agriculture said on Thursday 47,000 pigs were infected by blue-ear pig disease in July, down 51.5 percent from the previous month.

Of the infected pigs, 13,000 died, down 35.9 percent, said spokesman for the ministry Xue Liang.

"The epidemic across the country has been under much control," Xue said at a press conference.

Xue said by Aug. 22, China had administered 314 million milliliters of vaccine to immunize more than 100 million pigs.

The highly pathogenic disease, also known as Porcine Reproductive and Respiratory Syndrome, can be fatal for pigs, but the vaccinated pigs will no longer be infected by the disease, according to the ministry.

(Xinhua News Agency August 23, 2007)