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1. Securing the beef supply
By John Maday, Editor
Bovine Veterinarian
June 29, 2015
If foot-and-mouth disease (FMD) ever reaches the shores of the United States, initial priorities will be to contain and eradicate the disease. At the same time though, the livestock industry will need to continue operating. The ability to market animals and animal products with minimal risk of spreading the virus to uninfected herds is critical to maintaining continuity of business.
The Secure Beef Supply (SBS) plan is the latest initiative within the overall Secure Food Supply program. The SBS plan is funded by USDA in cooperation with the Center for Food Security and Public Health (CFSPH) at Iowa State University, which collaborates with other universities, organizations and industry stakeholders.
Danelle Bickett-Weddle, DVM, MPH, PhD, DACVPM and the associate director at CFSPH, says the SBS plan is intended to identify and address issues to better prepare government and industry to enable business continuity for the beef industry, starting with feedlots, in the event of an FMD outbreak. Its overall goal is to maintain business continuity for beef producers and processors and provide a continuous supply of beef products for consumers in the event of such an outbreak.
Development of the SBS plan was delayed until after those for eggs, pork and dairy had been drafted, not because beef is a lower priority, but for practical reasons related to the nature of beef production. First, in the event of an outbreak, feedyards and cattle producers at other production stages could potentially "warehouse" cattle for some time. Doing so would result in some economic losses but not of the scope that dairies or egg operations would face if they had to discard days or weeks worth of their perishable products. Farrow-to-finish swine operations also face tight marketing windows for finished hogs as they need to make space for subsequent generations moving through the system.
Full text:
http://www.bovinevetonline.com/news/industry/securing-beef-supply
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2. USDA takes first step to import fresh beef from Brazil, Argentina
By: Staff Report, Reuters
AgWeek.com
June 29, 2015
CHICAGO -- The U.S. Department of Agriculture's Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS) is amending its regulations to allow fresh beef into the United States from Brazil and Argentina under specific conditions that mitigate risk of foot-and-mouth disease (FMD), the agency said on Monday.
"This is the first step of a process for these regions to gain access to the U.S. market for beef," said APHIS.
Brazil and Argentina also need to meet food safety standards before being able to export any beef to the United States.
APHIS risk assessments indicate that fresh (chilled or frozen) beef can be safely imported, provided certain conditions are met to ensure beef exported to the United States will not harbor the FMD virus.
Full text:
http://www.agweek.com/event/article/id/27098/
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3. Warnings issued after first deer is infected with plague in El Paso County [CO]
Bonnie Silkman , Weekend GMC Anchor / Reporter
KRDO.com
June 29, 2015
OLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. - Imagine getting a knock on your door from a health official who's there to warn you about the plague. That's exactly what happened in Colorado Springs on Monday, after a deer was to be infected with the disease.
"I enjoy the deer. I'm glad they come in the yard. I hate to see something happen to them. It would be nice to know what can be done to protect the deer," said Kent Vance, who's lived in the Pleasant Valley neighborhood for most his life.
Health experts say it's extremely rare for a deer to get the plague.
Despite that, for the first time in El Paso County, a deer that was found in Pleasant Valley has tested positive for the disease.
The deer was euthanized last week.
"The deer was walking around the area sick. What happens is the plague hits the eyes of the deer. The deer was blind, so it was running into things, stumbling around. People got concerned and called the Division of Wildlife," Deputy Director of El Paso County Health Department, Tom Gonzalez said.
Full text: http://tinyurl.com/prxcorb
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4. State and poultry industry take precautions against bird flu [MD - edited]
By Alison Knezevich
The Baltimore Sun
June 28, 2015
Agriculture officials and poultry farmers in Maryland are taking extra precautions against bird flu after outbreaks have devastated flocks in other states.
The Maryland Department of Agriculture has banned the entry of waterfowl in fairs and shows in the state, stepped up testing requirements for poultry and met with emergency-management officials to prepare in case of an outbreak here. Some farms are taking part in additional training.
No cases of the avian flu have been reported in Maryland. But state officials say they are reaching out to commercial farmers in the state's $1 billion poultry industry and the growing number of backyard chicken enthusiasts.
The strain of bird flu that has hit states throughout the Midwest and Pacific Northwest is "very virulent," state veterinarian Dr. Michael Radebaugh said. "It doesn't take a lot to spread."
"I hope we never get it, but the chance is always there," said Jonathan Moyle, a poultry specialist with the Lower Eastern Shore Research and Education Center in Salisbury.
A spokeswoman for Salisbury-based Perdue Farms said the chicken giant is following its regular protocol to stop the spread of all disease and making sure its poultry houses are bird-proof to prevent exposure to waterfowl and wild birds.
Full text: http://tinyurl.com/pcbf26n
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5. Bird flu raises fears over vaccine supply, human risk
By Philip Brasher
Agri-Pulse.com
June 29, 2015
WASHINGTON - Lawmakers are raising concerns that the avian influenza outbreak that devastated Midwest poultry producers could threaten supplies of human vaccines and possibly spread to people through swine.
Top members of the House Energy and Commerce Committee, which oversees public health issues, are seeking assurances from the Obama administration that there will be sufficient supplies of vaccines that have to be produced through chicken eggs. This spring's outbreak of the bird flu devastated poultry farms in Iowa, Minnesota and other Midwest states.
The lawmakers also want to know what assessments the administration has done of the potential risk of the virus spreading to humans.
"The current sub-types of avian influenza do not appear to infect humans, but there is concern they could affect swine, which have spread avian influenza to humans in the past," the lawmakers say in a letter to the Department of Health and Human Services. The lawmakers also want to know what the government is doing to develop vaccines against the virus.
The lawmakers are separately asking the Government Accountability Office to review the adequacy of the Agriculture Department's response to the outbreak. Among other things, the lawmakers want to know how well USDA is ensuring that poultry producers have adequate biosecurity measures.
Full text:
http://www.agri-pulse.com/Bird-flu-worries-lawmakers-06292015.asp
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6. Consumer Trends: Trends in antibiotics
By Suzanne B.Bopp
Drovers CattleNetwork.com
June 29, 2015
Between 2010 and 2030, the global consumption of antibiotics will increase by 67 percent, according to a new study called "Global trends in antimicrobial use in food animals," published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences. Chicken and pork production will be responsible for most of that increase.
By 2030, China and the United States will likely lead the world in animal antibiotic use, but countries like Myanmar, Indonesia, Nigeria, Peru and Vietnam will see the highest projected percentage increases. There, a growing middle class will be looking to add more meat to their diets, so, the study's authors predict, producers will be looking for ways to increase production as inexpensively as possible.
The scientists behind the study are concerned about the consequences. To better understand them, the authors call for, among other things, an international surveillance network of antibiotics in the livestock sector - and, eventually, the withdrawal of their use as growth promotants in all food animals.
In this country, there is some movement in that direction already. The Food and Drug Administration has asked drug and meat companies to stop feeding antibiotics to livestock for faster growth. That request is strictly voluntary, but it's the strongest action the FDA has yet taken. The agency has also asked the makers of antibiotics to rewrite their labels to prohibit such use of their products, and the drug makers have agreed to do that by the end of next year.
Full text:
http://www.cattlenetwork.com/community/contributors/consumer-trends-trends-antibiotics
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7. Northey: Rebuilding Iowa's egg-laying industry will take time
Rod Boshart, Times Bureau
Quad-City Times
June 29, 2015
DES MOINES - Iowa's bird flu outbreak wiped out nearly half of the state's 60 million egg-laying chickens, and it likely will take months to rebuild flocks.
Some producers also will be forced out of business because of substantial financial losses that will be partially reimbursed under a federal program, Iowa officials said Monday.
"This has been a very difficult and unusual thing to deal with," Gov. Terry Branstad told members of the state's Executive Council, which voted 3-1 Monday to provide up to $1.1 million in state money to assist in cleanup and disposal activities at farms hit by the highly pathogenic avian influenza. "This has been devastating. It's been close to half of the laying hens in Iowa and a significant amount of turkeys."
Iowa Agriculture Secretary Bill Northey said the outbreak that hit 18 Iowa counties led to the deaths and euthanizing of more than 33 million commercial layers, pullets and turkeys, including about 27 million egg-producing chickens.
He said June 16 marked Iowa's last confirmed bird flu case in an outbreak that ranks as the state's worst animal health emergency with costs topping $300 million for cleanup, disposal and disinfection operations. A federal indemnification program will cover the "fair market value" of the dead birds for producers.
"Hopefully, we're near the end of it," Northey said.
Attention now turns to finishing the cleanup activities, repopulating affected facilities and taking steps to prevent a return of the deadly flu virus this fall when temperatures cool and migrating birds pass through Iowa posing a new threat to Iowa's commercial flocks, he said.
Full text: http://tinyurl.com/pvt5sx8
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