Weekly livestock and equine news: December 21, 2020

Tyson fires seven managers after probe into COVID-19 wagering at pork plant

Tyson Foods announced it’s fired seven managers at an Iowa pork plant after investigating allegations that they took bets on how many employees would catch COVID-19, Reuters reports. The independent investigation, led by former U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder, came in response to a lawsuit filed by the son of a worker at a Tyson facility in Waterloo, Iowa, who died in April of complications from the virus. The lawsuit claimed that plant managers misled workers about COVID-19, bet on workers catching the virus and allowed sick employees to continue working. New York City Comptroller Scott M. Stringer recently sent a letter to the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission to investigate Tyson for making misleading disclosures to investors by “flagrantly misrepresenting its poor pandemic response.”

Merck releases smartphone app to monitor livestock health

Merck’s new app uses artificial intelligence to help producers get the most up-to-date information on each of their animals, from their smartphone, according to the company. The company compares this to precision agriculture methods that optimize each acre of land. “It ultimately provides another set of eyes that goes beyond what the human can provide, in a lot of cases, in order to bring more value to the production system,” said Jason Nickell, Merck’s associate director of livestock technology and innovation.

FDA approves intentional genomic alteration in pigs

The FDA has approved an intentional genomic alteration (IGA) line of domestic pigs that can be used as food or for human therapeutics, Feed Strategy reports. The FDA granted the approval—the first of its kind—to biotech firm Revivicor Inc. According to the agency, the IGA in GalSafe pigs is intended to eliminate alpha-gal sugar on the surface of the pigs’ cells. People with alpha-gal syndrome may have an allergic reaction to alpha-gal sugar found in meat from pigs, cattle and lamb. The pigs could provide a source of porcine-based materials to produce human medical products that are free of detectable alpha-gal sugar, FDA said. “Today’s first-ever approval of an animal biotechnology product for both food and as a potential source for biomedical use represents a tremendous milestone for scientific innovation,” said FDA commissioner Stephen M. Hahn. Revivicor indicated it initially intends to sell meat from GalSafe pigs by mail order rather than in supermarkets.

New SoundByte: Aservo Equihaler from Boehringer Ingelheim

The Aservo EquiHaler is a ciclesonide inhalation spray from Boehringer Ingelheim that the company says is the first FDA-approved inhalant glucocorticoid for horses. It’s proven to improve lung function with a 10-day treatment protocol, according to the company. Ciclesonide is 12 times more potent than dexamethasone when activated in the respiratory tract, and there’s a lower risk of side effects compared to dexamethasone, according to the company. More information is available in Veterinary Advantage’s SoundByte.

Surging feed prices will challenge the U.S. animal protein sector’s recovery: CoBank

The U.S. animal protein sector is expected to face a 12% increase in feed costs in 2021, which will mark the highest year-over-year inflation since 2011, according to a new report from CoBank. This means cattle feeders, hog producers and chicken producers will pay higher prices for feed than they have in many years, according to the report. This comes as the meat and poultry industries continue to face challenges from the pandemic. “Most producers lost money during the year, but that’s been in the midst of some of the most extreme volatility in global food demand anyone has ever seen,” said Will Sawyer, lead animal protein economist at CoBank. “Industry margins are far better today than they were in the spring, but there will be tighter windows of opportunity for the livestock and poultry sectors to profit in 2021.”

Antimicrobial drug sales for food animals increased slightly in 2019: FDA

U.S. sales of antimicrobial drugs for food animals rose last year, but authorities say efforts to curb their overuse are still working, the VIN News Service reports. Sales of medically important antimicrobials (drugs also used in human medicine) for production animals rose 3% to just under 6.2 million kilograms of active ingredient, the FDA said. The agency added that the “trend over time” is encouraging. Sales of medically important antimicrobials were still down 25% since 2010 and 36% since 2015, the peak year for sales, the FDA said. Fluctuations in sales volumes can be influenced by various factors, including changes in animal populations or health needs.