The marketing of cysticercotic pigs in the Sierra of Peru

In Peru pork supplied through regulated slaughterhouses is primarily restricted to the large cities on the coast. Approximately 65% of the pork consumed in the country is obtained through informal channels that are not inspected or supervised. The pathways via which pigs are commercialized were studied in Huancayo, a city in the Peruvian Sierra where cysticercosis is endemic. Official purchase, slaughter, and market records were reviewed. Also, direct surveys and participant observation were carried out at two local live pig markets and at two informal meat markets. Pigs were not processed in local slaughterhouses; instead, they were butchered informally. The proportion of cysticercotic pigs detected by tongue examination ranged from 14% to 25% of the total sold. Since cysticercotic pigs and pork are sold through informal markets, surveys of abattoirs and meat markets are not a reliable way to monitor the prevalence of porcine cysticercosis in Peru. We estimate that 48% of the pork traded informally and 23% of fhe total pork consumed in Huancayo is derived from pigs that are infected with cysticercosis.