Weekly livestock news for January 27: USDA awards $10.2M to implement farm bill’s disease response programs

USDA awards $10.2M to implement farm bill’s disease response programs

The U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service has awarded $10.2 million to support disease prevention and emergency response training and exercise projects, as well as projects to enhance laboratory diagnostic capabilities. The agency is also moving forward to develop the National Animal Vaccine and Veterinary Countermeasures Bank, National Hog Farmer reports. The 2018 farm bill allocated funding for these programs to help prevent animal pests and diseases from entering the United States and to reduce the spread and impact of potential diseases. “These important tools will help prevent and respond to animal pests and diseases, help keep animals healthy and ensure markets stay open,” U.S. Representatives Jim Costa and Collin Peterson, of the House Agriculture committee, said in a joint statement. Both reps led efforts to include mandatory, long-term funding for these programs to ensure the United States has tools to address disease risks like African swine fever, avian influenza, virulent Newcastle disease and foot-and-mouth disease.

Live animal trade raises disease risk

Almost 30% more pigs, goats, cows and sheep were shipped, flown and driven across the world in 2017 than a decade earlier, according to the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization. That number is expected to rise. But transporting live animals around the world increases the risk of disease transmission, according to veterinarians and epidemiologists who say the growing industry may have already caused viruses to spread. One especially concerning disease is African swine fever, which Jason Dewulf, a Ghent University veterinarian, said likely entered Belgium either through imported contaminated animal products or by illegal movements of wild boar. “There are several drivers of spreading diseases, but live animals are the largest source of infection,” Dewulf told The Guardian. “The more you are going to move animals, the more you run the risk that diseases will be spread through these animals. There are other routes, the virus can be transmitted in meat products, for example, but it’s much more efficient to transmit via live animals.”

One Health certification allows poultry producers to demonstrate welfare practices

A new certification program aims to help poultry producers demonstrate responsible animal care practices to their customers. One Health Certified, administered by the National Institute of Antimicrobial Resistance Research and Education, is currently open to chicken and turkey producers, with other proteins planned to become available in the future. Participating companies are evaluated on their animal production practices in five core areas, WattAgNet reports. Those core areas are disease prevention, veterinary care, responsible antibiotic use, animal welfare, and environmental impacts. The production standard is based on the One Health concept, the idea that human, animal and environmental health are all interconnected. Producers that qualify for certification will be able to label their retail and wholesale products with the One Health Certified logo. Mountaire Farms is the first chicken producer to be certified.

Australia’s government distributes aid to farmers

An estimated 10 million hectares of land have been destroyed by fires in Australia, and more than 1.25 billion wild animals are thought to have been killed, but agricultural losses in the country are still unknown, Feedstuffs reports. Australia’s agriculture minister, Bridget McKenzie, on January 14 noted the “massive scale of destruction—from vineyards, orchards and forestry plantations to livestock herds and abalone farms.” The government has allocated 100 million Australian dollars (about $68.7 million at current exchange rates) in emergency funding for farm, fish and forestry businesses in fire-affected regions, and up to AU$75,000 (about $51,500 at current exchange rates) in grants for farming businesses in fire-affected regions. McKenzie said that while the full effects of the bushfires on the agriculture sector aren’t fully known yet, “we do know that many farmers have lost their livestock and fruit crops. Foresters have seen their plantations destroyed, fishers have lost the ability to maintain their catch throughout this crisis and beekeepers have seen over 4,600 hives destroyed, with 23,000 suffering losses.”

European feed sector largely welcomes EU Green Deal

While the specifics have yet to be revealed, industry groups in Europe say the EU Green Deal could help feed and animal producers, Feed Strategy reports. The deal, unveiled last month, aims to achieve carbon neutrality in the bloc by 2050. “The Green Deal can have a positive effect on the feed industry as we have the capacity to deliver solutions to demands such as enhancing animal health and welfare, reducing emissions and boosting the circular economy,” Nick Major, president of the European Feed Manufacturers’ Federation, said in a statement to Feed Strategy. “But we need to ensure that the contribution and future of the livestock sector as an economic activity and an essential element of sustainable food systems in Europe is fully understood, recognized and safeguarded in the first place by EU policymakers.” Some initiatives that have been suggested as potential aspects of the deal, like further reductions in the use of antibiotics, could benefit the feed sector, Major said.