Here's Why the Swine Health Information Center Needs Your Help

Dec 12, 2022

The Swine Health Information Center (SHIC) wants your input.

As SHIC prepares to develop its 2023 Plan of Work, it seeks broad industry input to help guide activities in the coming year.

"Input may include topic areas, research priorities and identified industry needs in which SHIC should focus efforts, such as an emerging swine disease or an emerging swine health issue. Rather than restricting efforts of the Center, the Plan of Work provides a roadmap for the next year but remains flexible, allowing SHIC to react to issues of the industry as they occur in real-time while staying true to the organization’s mission," SHIC said in its December newsletter.

The mission of SHIC is to protect and enhance the health of the U.S. swine herd through coordinated global disease monitoring, targeted research investments that minimize the impact of future disease threats and analysis of swine health data. That's why the broader pork industry is encouraged and invited to be a part of SHIC's next plan of work.

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Video: Season 7, Episode 1: Managing Risk and Seeing Opportunities in U.S. Pork Production

Today’s episode features three guests discussing the similarities and differences between pork production in the United States and Brazil, along with strategies for managing risk in today’s industry while recognizing and acting on opportunities. First, Dr. Anne Caroline de Lara, executive manager of live pig production at Seara Alimentos, a JBS company in Brazil, is joined by Dr. Matthew Turner, head of operations for JBS Live Pork. Together, they discuss how labor, climate and ventilation challenges vary between Brazil and the United States, while underscoring their shared commitment to raising healthy pigs. They also point to lessons producers in both countries can take from one another’s systems and on-farm experiences. Then, Brady Reicks, risk manager at Reicks View Farms, shares his perspective on risk management, drawing from his background in markets and his transition into farming. He discusses how protecting margins varies by operation and offers practical approaches producers can use to make marketing and business decisions with greater confidence rather than hesitation.

Both conversations were recorded at recent industry events focused on swine livability, including the International Conference on Pig Livability and Iowa Swine Day.