USDA Updates Swine Hemorrhagic Fevers Surveillance Plan

Jul 18, 2022

The United States Department of Agriculture's (USDA) Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS) is updating the Swine Hemorrhagic Fevers: African and Classical Swine Fevers Integrated Surveillance Plan to reflect recent enhancements in the program. APHIS developed the initial surveillance plan in 2019 to further its overall ASF preparedness efforts. These updates reflect additional measures put in place over the last year, particularly in light of the detection of African Swine Fever (ASF) in the western hemisphere which has not been present since the 1980s.

In 2021, ASF was detected in Haiti and the Dominican Republic. Because of these countries' proximity to Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands, APHIS promptly increased existing mitigations and initiated several new proactive prevention efforts there. These efforts included enhanced surveillance in Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands and additional surveillance activities in feral swine.

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Video: Sweetener Effects on Gut Health - Dr. Kwangwook Kim

In this episode of The Swine Nutrition Blackbelt Podcast, Dr. Kwangwook Kim, Assistant Professor at Michigan State University, discusses the use of non-nutritive sweeteners in nursery pig diets. He explains how sucralose and neotame influence feed intake, gut health, metabolism, and the frequency of diarrhea compared to antibiotics. The conversation highlights mechanisms beyond palatability, including hormone signaling and nutrient transport. Listen now on all major platforms!

“Receptors responsible for sweet taste are present not only in the mouth but also along the intestinal tract.”

Meet the guest: Dr. Kwangwook Kim / kwangwook-kim is an Assistant Professor at Michigan State University, specializing in swine nutrition and feed additives under disease challenge models. He earned his M.S. and Ph.D. in Animal Sciences from the University of California, Davis, where he focused on intestinal health and metabolic responses in pigs. His research evaluates alternatives to antibiotics, targeting gut health and performance in nursery pigs.