Pork Industry Message For Antibiotic Awareness Week: Healthy Animals Equals Safe Foodb

Nov 18, 2015

As part of World Antibiotics Awareness Week, the National Pork Producers Council is highlighting U.S. pork producers’ three-decade commitment to responsible and necessary use of animal health products to keep their animals healthy and to produce safe food. Among those efforts, the U.S. pork industry:

Pork Industry Message For Antibiotic Awareness Week: Healthy Animals Equals Safe Food

1980s

Developed in 1989 the Pork Quality Assurance program to address concerns over antibiotic residues. Today, 99.9 percent of pork tested meets FDA residue standards.

1990s

Established Judicious Use of Antibiotics standards for pork producers to follow.

Supported establishment in 1996 of the federal National Antimicrobial Resistance Monitoring System to track antibiotic resistance in foodborne bacteria from humans, retail meats and food animals. The industry continues to lobby Congress for federal funding for the program.

2000s

Backed in 2002 USDA’s Collaboration in Animal Health and Food Safety Epidemiology pilot program to enhance overall understanding of the epidemiology of antibiotic resistant foodborne bacteria that pose a food-safety risk by monitoring antibiotic use on farm and bacteria on farm and in plants.

Developed in 2005 the Take Care – Use Antibiotics Responsibly program to provide pork producers and their veterinarians principles and guidelines to use when making antibiotic use decisions. FDA, CDC and veterinarians provided input for the program.

Incorporated in 2007 the Take Care – Use Antibiotics Responsibly program into the Pork Quality Assurance Plus program. PQA Plus, which includes producer certification and on-farm assessments, has assessment points on veterinary-client-patient relationships and antibiotic use record keeping.

Click here to see more...

Video: Secure Pork Supply Plan | Preparing for the Future | U.S. Pork Producers

Join Jill Brokaw, a third-generation pig farmer and staff member of the National Pork Board, as she dives into the vital role of the Secure Pork Supply (SPS) Plan in preparing the U.S. pork industry for potential foreign animal disease outbreaks. This video is an essential watch for pork producers who are looking to safeguard their operations against the threats of diseases like foot and mouth disease, classical swine fever, and African swine fever.

Why Should Pork Producers Care? An outbreak of foreign animal diseases in the U.S. could lead to severe restrictions and potentially result in industry-wide financial losses estimated between $15 to $100 billion. The SPS Plan is a collective effort to prevent such catastrophic outcomes by enhancing biosecurity, ensuring animal traceability, and promoting effective disease monitoring.

What You'll Learn:

The Importance of Preparedness: Understand why being proactive is crucial for maintaining business continuity during an outbreak. Enhanced Biosecurity Measures: Write a site-specific biosecurity plan that can serve as the first line of defense against potential outbreaks. Animal Disease Traceability: Learn about the significance of tracking animal movement and how acquiring a premises identification number (PIN) and using AgView can facilitate this process. Disease Monitoring: Find out how continuous observation and reporting can keep your herd healthy and disease-free.

Getting Started with SPS: The video breaks down the seemingly daunting task of preparing for a foreign animal disease outbreak into manageable steps. With free resources available at www.securepork.org, including templates and instructions, Jill guides producers on developing a customized plan to enhance their farm's defenses.

Expert Insights: Hear from Dr. Pam Zaabel on collaborating with your herd veterinarian to develop and implement your SPS plan effectively.

Takeaway: The Secure Pork Supply initiative is more than a plan; it's a commitment to the resilience of our food supply and the livelihoods within the pork industry. By embracing these proactive measures, we can collectively enhance our preparedness for foreign animal disease outbreaks.