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BC Pork Producers Recognise Need to Share Information to Protect Other Pork Producers

By Bruce Cochrane

The manager of BC Pork's PED Response Project says the province's pork producers have recognized the need to protect their fellow producers by agreeing to share information in the event their operations become infected by PED.

As part of its PED Response Project, BC Pork has developed a biocontainment plan to be triggered in the event Porcine Epidemic Diarrhea is identified on a British Columbia farm.

The biocontainment plan outlines steps to prepare for an outbreak, including having important contact information posted and readily accessible, as well as steps be taken in the event the virus is suspected to be present.

Heather Carriere, the manager of BC Pork's PED Response Project, says the response of producers has been really wonderful to see.

Heather Carriere-BC Pork:
All registered producers in B.C. have a signed biocontainment plan.

The biocontainment plans are signed by the producers themselves, their herd vet and BC Pork.

It does state that the producer gives BC Pork and their herd veterinarian permission to identify their farm, to inform all necessary industry partners.

While some may be a little hesitant about that part of it, the main reason for it is to show the transparency and the need for good communication, especially when events like PED occur.

I was quite happy when all of the producers, when we reviewed all of the different steps, they readily signed their biocontainment plans understanding that this is not information that would be broadcast obviously but necessary industry partners so, in their chain, who else needs to know about this.

Carriere stresses biocontainment plans are really closer to the last step in a larger effort.

She says surveillance, traceability and continued use of on-site biosecurity measures should also be key parts of any producer's plan.

For more information visit the BC Pork's web site at bcpork.ca or any of the other provincial pork organization web sites.

Source: Farmscape


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