(123rf)

South Korea on Tuesday reported its first African swine fever (ASF) case in around nine months.

The latest ASF case was found at a farm located in the inter-Korean border county of Cheorwon in Gangwon Province, which raised some 1,200 pigs, according to the Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs.

It marked the first case of the animal disease since September last year when the disease broke out at a local farm in the county of Hwacheon.

The government issued a 48-hour standstill order for pig farms and related facilities in the region, and is preparing to cull affected pigs as a preventive step.

There were 65 pig farms within a 10-kilometer radius of the affected farm, and they raise about 140,000 pigs combined, according to the ministry.

ASF does not affect humans but is deadly to pigs. There is currently no vaccine or cure for the disease.

"The government will make all-out efforts to prevent the spread of the disease," the ministry said, calling on farms to thoroughly abide by necessary quarantine steps. (Yonhap)