Can What We Feed Farm Animals Directly Benefit Our Own Health?

Sep 09, 2026

By Pablo Gregorini

Several chronic diseases—obesity, cardiovascular disease, type 2 diabetes and some cancers—have been linked to lifestyles and diets high in calories, based on processed foods and lacking diversity and nutritional value.

These diseases are among the greatest health challenges globally and in New Zealand, placing growing pressure on health care systems.

This highlights the need for prevention strategies that address not only individual consumer behavior but also environments and food systems.

Research increasingly shows how connected our health is to that of the animals we eat and the land they graze. The conventional view of landscapes as merely sites of food production no longer holds.

My team's research focuses on designing and implementing new food production systems as part of a project that integrates farming with health in pursuit of "healthscapes."

Our objective is to innovate, demonstrate and manage a tangible transition from current practices to a system designed to enhance health from the ground up, with measured improvements in soil, plant, animal, human and community health.

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Video: Managing Severe PRRS Outbreaks - Dr. Claire Mtezankuni

In this episode of The Swine it Podcast Show Canada, Dr. Claire Mtezankuni, Swine Veterinarian at Carthage Veterinary Service, discusses the growing severity of PRRS outbreaks in sow farms. She explains how respiratory disease and sow mortality are changing outbreak response, why necropsies and bacterial cultures can guide treatment, and how vaccination, biosecurity, pain management, and clear team communication support recovery and elimination. Listen now on all major platforms!

“Emerging PRRS strains can produce severe reproductive and respiratory disease simultaneously, creating substantial health challenges across sow farms during acute outbreaks.”

Meet the guest: Dr. Claire Mtezankuni / claire-mtezankuni-2529b1b3 is a Swine Veterinarian at Carthage Veterinary Service in Illinois, where her work includes commercial farm veterinary leadership, herd health, disease elimination, and veterinary internship coordination. She holds a DVM from the University of Wisconsin–Madison and a Master of Veterinary Science in Livestock Systems Health from the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign. Learn more from Dr. Claire Mtezankuni on The Swine it Podcast Show Canada, available on all major platforms.