Livestock-Equine News: July 8, 2024

New animal drug approval process explained

The FDA’s Center for Veterinary Medicine (CVM) will host the first of a series of five public meetings on Wednesday, July 17, for stakeholders who are interested in the new animal drug approval process. The initial conference will provide overviews of the animal drug approval process, best practices in the approval process, the environmental impact technical section and more.

McChicken, not McPlant, will be McDonald’s go-to for protein

McDonald’s USA President Joe Erlinger told attendees at the WSJ Global Food Forum that the company’s McPlant plant-based burgers failed to win over consumers in two test markets – San Francisco and Dallas, reports Fox Business. “The bigger trend around protein consumption is really around chicken, and we think we’re poised to serve that trend well, and that’s where we’re making investments,” he said.

USDA releases milk marketing order recommendations

Almost a year after USDA’s Ag Marketing Service began considering testimony and evaluating accepted proposals, the organization has issued its Recommended Decision proposing to amend the uniform pricing formulas applicable in all 11 federal milk marketing orders. The decision pertains to milk composition factors, surveyed commodity products, Class III and Class IV formula factors, the base Class I skim milk price and Class I differentials.

Innovation: Transforming the pork industry

Speakers at the 2024 World Pork Expo discussed the benefits of innovations during a session called The Future of Everything Pork. “If we can monitor animals throughout the day, then we can highlight when things are changing,” said Tammi Brown-Brandell, University of Nebraska. Dan Carlson, chief scientific officer at Recombinetics, said gene-editing technology can change an animal from being susceptible to porcine reproductive and respiratory syndrome to being resistant to the disease.

Four states agree to voluntary H5N1 testing of bulk milk tanks

The USDA announced four states – Kansas, Nebraska, New Mexico and Texas – are launching a voluntary pilot program to test bulk milk tanks on dairy farms for H5N1 infection. Farmers who voluntarily enter the program will be able to move their herds across state lines without additional testing after bulk milk tanks or similar representative samples test negative for H5N1 for three consecutive weeks. Producers must also comply with continued regular weekly monitoring and testing of their herd for H5N1.

Expanded emergency livestock assistance program

The USDA has begun accepting applications through its Emergency Assistance for Livestock, Honeybees and Farm-raised Fish Program to provide financial assistance to eligible dairy producers who incur milk losses due to H5N1 infection. Positive test results must be confirmed through the USDA’s Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS) National Veterinary Services Laboratories (NVSL).