Weekly livestock and equine news: December 14, 2020

France confirms first farm outbreak of the year of severe bird flu

The French farm ministry said highly pathogenic H5N8 bird flu had been found on a duck farm in the southwest of the country, confirming France’s first farm outbreak of the virus this year. Bird flu has been spreading rapidly in Europe, putting the poultry industry on alert after previous outbreaks led to the culling of tens of millions of birds, Reuters reports. “The ANSES national reference laboratory confirmed today the infection of a farm of 6,000 ducks by the H5N8 virus in the municipality of Benesse-Maremne (Landes Region), in which high mortality was observed on Dec. 5,” the ministry said in a statement. A security zone was set up around the farm on December 7, implying extra monitoring, a ban on the move of poultry and additional sanitary measures, the ministry said, adding that all ducks on the farm were culled.

Elanco Animal Health selects Indiana for global headquarters

Elanco Animal Health has announced Indiana as its base for future global consolidated operations, with new headquarters in downtown Indianapolis. The move represents another step in Elanco’s plan to capture economic value through global footprint consolidation after its August acquisition of Bayer’s animal health business, according to the announcement. The competitive incentive package offered by the state of Indiana and the city of Indianapolis includes a 45-acre former industrial site located in the southwest corner of the downtown, with a restricted option for an additional 20 acres. The package also includes tax credits for retention of more than 1,600 existing jobs in Indiana, as well as the addition of at least 570 Indiana jobs over the next 10 years.

Chick-fil-A sues Tyson and other poultry companies over price fixing

Chick-fil-A, the largest U.S. chicken restaurant chain, sued Tyson and several other top American poultry producers, accusing them of illegally coordinating with each other to keep prices high, Bloomberg reports. The closely held Atlanta-based restaurant chain “purchased billions of dollars worth of broiler chicken” from defendants or co-conspirators “at prices that were artificially inflated,” according to the complaint filed in U.S. District Court in Chicago. In addition to Tyson, the lawsuit named Pilgrim’s Pride and Sanderson Farms, as well as others. Chick-fil-A is the latest company to join in the years-long antitrust litigation accusing poultry companies of fixing prices beginning in 2008 and continuing for about a decade. Target also filed a lawsuit this month, joining others including grocer Fresh Market and convenience store chain Wawa Inc.

Genetic sequencing could help with quick disease detection in herds, researchers say

A method of disease detection using genetic sequencing has proved accurate in a new study and could lead to faster detection and surveillance. The technology uses Oxford Nanopore MinION genetic sequencing to identify disease at the species and strain level. Genetic sequencing allows for the identification of the specific DNA footprint of the disease, which will allow for improved disease surveillance when illness is detected in a herd. “The beauty of sequencing is that you know the entire genetic sequence of the virus, and you can determine the strain of the virus. So you know, is this a strain from next door or is this the same strain that you had six months ago and somehow it came back?” said Cheryl Dvorak, a University of Minnesota researcher. This certainty will allow producers and veterinarians to identify gaps in biosecurity processes, Bovine Veterinarian reports.

Iowa likely to see another CWD surge this winter, veterinarian says

Iowa is likely to see a second surge in cases of chronic wasting disease this winter, according to a state veterinarian. The disease is fatal to whitetail deer and also kills elk, moose and reindeer. The state’s confirmed cases of CWD doubled last season and now stand at 91, said Dr. Rachel Ruden of the Iowa Department of Natural Resources. She predicts there’s another jump in cases coming. “That’s what chronic wasting disease does,” Ruden said. “Once it gets into an area, it intensifies and spreads geographically. I expect more cases this year.” Iowa Capital Dispatch reports.

A left-side preference in horses may indicate stress: study

Horses tend to become more “left-legged” and “left-eyed” in stressful situations, according to a new study. The switch to right-brain processing suggests horses are confronting challenges that are usually managed by the brain hemisphere that deals with emotions, the researchers said. When the horses adjust to the stressor and learn to cope, they tend to revert back to left-brain hemisphere processing, which deals with routine. Observing changes in laterality could be an effective way to monitor how horses are dealing with management or training changes, said Isabell Marr, a researcher at the University of Regensburg in Germany. More information is available from The Horse.