Producers and industry stakeholders from the US and Canada, National Pork Board, American Association of Swine Veterinarians, Ontario Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs, Canadian Pork Council, packing industry representatives, and transportation experts are collaborating on the project.
This new group hopes to involve more stakeholders in this initial process with the ultimate goal of decreasing the incidence of disease associated with the marketing and transportation of pigs and sows to the first points of concentration.
“The mission of the Swine Health Information Center is to protect and enhance the health of swine herds through coordinated global disease monitoring”
With the lessons of PED and other diseases’ transmission fresh in industry minds, Dr. Sundberg says they hope to capture the urgency felt across the North American swine industry to prevent pathogens from being carried back to the farm from first points of concentration; where they must be contained.
The program will look for the best biocontainment recommendations from a variety of biosecurity transport programs currently practised in the industry, and develop a procedures list at these facilities.
Focusing on biocontainment will help to solidify a common foundation for actionable prevention and containment by shaping how transporters and markets act at their point of livestock handling.
To be successful, this action group recognizes the need to engage producers, packers, sow assembly yards and buying stations, as well as those who transport livestock, to create and adopt enhanced transportation biosecurity standard operating procedures (SOPs) in addition to multiple programs currently available.
Together, with all stakeholders sharing clear, mutually-beneficial objectives, SOPs can be developed, implemented and enforced to decrease the spread of pathogens.
The group will continue its efforts to engage all stakeholders as well as achieving its objectives which are outlined here.
The mission of the Swine Health Information Center is to protect and enhance the health of the North American swine herds through coordinated global disease monitoring, targeted research investments that minimize the impact of future disease threats, and analysis of swine health data.
Source: Meatbusiness