Over 60 Delegates Attend Ontario Pork Policy Day

Sep 25, 2023

Guelph - Ontario Pork held its 2023 Policy Day with over 60 producers participating. The annual event is a chance for delegates to provide feedback and offer suggestions on how to best move the province’s pork industry forward.

Board Chair John de Bruyn opened the discussion by providing an update on initiatives and activities that Ontario Pork has been working on during the past year.

Upcoming events include the Queen’s Park Reception in November, where producers will have the opportunity to speak directly with MPP’s to discuss the importance of government investment in our industry, emergency preparedness and improvements to risk management.

Delegates were also given an overview of proposed changes to producer statistics and were presented with a detailed marketing update.

Vice Chair Tara Terpstra led a session on how to strengthen Ontario’s pork industry by detailing the importance of producer involvement in advocacy, along with discussions on board recruitment and succession planning.

During each session delegates gave valuable feedback on what direction and priorities they’d like to see Ontario Pork focus on for next year.

The day was capped off with a presentation from representatives of the Community Safety Knowledge Alliance, who detailed the risks of cybersecurity attacks and offered a number of best practices to safeguard against cyber threats.

Watch highlights from the 2023 Policy Day here: https://youtu.be/WtBHS8SkLYE

Source : Ontario Pork

Video: Swine Biosecurity: 5 Critical Steps to Prevent Disease Transmission | LANXESS

Protecting herd health starts before anyone enters the barn. Every visitor, employee, piece of equipment and movement between farms can introduce disease risks if proper biosecurity protocols aren't followed.

In this SwineWeb Biosecurity Intelligence feature, Dr. Gisele Ravagnani of LANXESS Biosecurity Solutions explains practical steps pork producers can take to strengthen on-farm biosecurity and reduce the risk of disease transmission.

Key topics covered:

• Visitor Management: Why visitor logs, previous farm exposure and downtime requirements are essential.

• Controlled Barn Entry: How Danish entry systems establish a clear separation between clean and dirty areas.

• Shower-In/Shower-Out Protocols: The importance of dedicated clothing, footwear and controlled movement.

• Footbath Management: Proper cleaning, disinfection and maintenance practices, including the use of Virkon™ S.

• Equipment Biosecurity: Why equipment must be properly cleaned, disinfected and dried before entering production areas.