The Veterinary Counsel with the Canadian Pork Council says western Canada's ability to raise high health pigs has given the region an advantage when it comes to "Raised Without Antibiotics" production.
To help the veterinary community understand how raised without antibiotics production is evolving in western Canada, the Canada-West Swine Health Intelligence Network has surveyed swine veterinarians working with pigs in "Raised Without Antibiotics" programs.
Dr. Egan Brockhoff, the Veterinary Counsel with the Canadian Pork Council, says western Canada has the space and geogrphy that has allowed us to create some very high health herds.
Dr. Egan Brockhoff-Canadian Pork Council:
That's one very large factor that has let the west take the lead in raised without antibiotics production.
Other tools that veterinarians are using are vaccination and specifically autogenous vaccination designed for those specific farms that are participating.
Unfortunately not all viruses and bacteria afford themselves to easy vaccination.
For example Streptococcus suis, which is the number diagnosed bacteria, doesn't respond very well to vaccination.
Source : Farmscape