Japan is battling an outbreak of porcine epidemic diarrhea – or PED – that has already killed more than 5,000 pigs across the country.

Officials at the Agriculture Ministry say cases of PED emerged last October for the first time in seven years.

32,000 cases have been recorded so far across four prefectures, ranging from eastern Japan to the southwestern prefecture of Okinawa. More than 5,000 pigs have died from the disease.

Authorities are calling on farmers across the country to disinfect vehicles used to transport pigs, among other measures.

They say eating the meat of contaminated pigs does not pose a threat to human health.