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1. Equine Forum focuses on industry collaboration
By NIAA
Bovine Veterinarian
January 5, 2016
Forum relies on industry input in order to gain progress within equine health. The Equine Diseases Forum, hosted by the National Institute for Animal Agriculture and the United State Animal Health Association, will bring together equine health experts, industry leaders and horse owners January 19-21, 2016 in Denver, Colo. at the DoubleTree by Hilton.
"The forum is designed to promote engagement between attendees and industry involvement is essential," said Dr. Peter Timoney, veterinarian and professor at the Gluck Equine Research Center at the University of Kentucky.
This forum is the first of its kind and aims to bring people face-to-face to discuss the issues.
"There are a range of publications speaking on equine disease, however there is no substitute for real dialogue and being able to raise your hand and ask a question or voice a concern," Timoney said. "Speakers at the forum will be there to facilitate that dialogue, and provide the backdrop of information for the attendees."
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2. IBMP Partners Agree on Bison Management Operations
Big Horn Radio Network
January 5, 2016
Members of the Interagency Bison Management Plan (IBMP) have signed a winter operations plan that aims to reduce the current population of 4,900 animals. Because the Yellowstone bison population has high reproductive and survival rates, it will be necessary to cull 600-900 animals to offset the population increase expected this year. IBMP managers will decrease the population using two methods:
(A) Public and tribal hunting outside the park, and
(B) Capturing bison near the park boundary and then transferring them to Native American tribes for processing and distribution of meat and hides to their members.
Bison are a migratory species and they move across a vast landscape. When they are inside Yellowstone, they have access to all habitat. But in the winter, when some bison migrate to lower elevations outside the park in search of food, the surrounding states and some private landowners don't offer the same access to habitat. Wild bison are only allowed in limited areas outside of Yellowstone because some are infected with the disease brucellosis that can be transmitted to cattle. Also, there are human safety and property damage concerns in some areas. The size of the population and the level of tolerance outside the park are two issues often debated by the IBMP partners and their constituents.
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3. Stakeholders group seeks engagement on antimicrobial resistance
By John Maday, Editor, Bovine Veterinarian
Drovers CattleNetwork.com
January 5, 2016
Formed by the Infectious Diseases Society of America, the U.S. Stakeholder Forum on Antimicrobial Resistance (SFAR) now lists over 100 health-related organizations that have joined the partnership. Those groups include the American Veterinary Medical Association and the American Association of Bovine Practitioners.
According to the SFAR website, the group was convened on the principle that any U.S. government strategy to address antimicrobial resistance should involve sustained and meaningful engagement with non-government experts and stakeholders throughout the policy development and implementation process.
The groups participating in SFAR support the following principles:
� Antimicrobial resistance (AR) is a well-documented and urgent problem of global significance and the U.S. should be a leader in a multi-pronged effort to reduce the negative impact of resistance on human, animal, and plant health.
� The U.S. needs a financed, coordinated, actionable national plan to address AR with measurable goals, timelines, and mechanisms for accountability.
� The U.S. AR action plan and its implementation must be informed by formal, substantive, and regular engagement with non-government experts and stakeholders.
� Government alone cannot effectively address the problem of AR; stakeholders (including healthcare providers, pharmacists, veterinarians, patients & their families, consumers, payers, public health entities, industry, farmers & ranchers, researchers & academia, advocates, and others) are critical partners who can help inform policy, create awareness, and mobilize key constituencies and the broader public to support action.
Recently, AABP, along with 29 human health, livestock and other stakeholder organizations, signed an S-FAR letter to the White House, addressing the President's Combating Antibiotic-Resistant Bacteria Action Plan (CARB). The group is encouraging the White House to finalize and release recommendations or indicate a release date from the CARB Economic Incentives Working Group for stakeholder comment and review.
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4. Strengthening the wildlife-livestock-human interface
By JoAnn Alumbaugh, Editor, PORK Network
Drovers CattleNetwork.com
January 5, 2016
The OIE and the CIC reinforce their efforts to collaborate on animal health as it relates to the wildlife-livestock-human interface.
Last month, the Director General of the World Organization for Animal Health (OIE), Dr. Bernard Vallat, and the President of the Council for Game and Wildlife Conservation (CIC), Mr. Bernard Loz�, signed an agreement between their two institutions to renovate and strengthen their common objectives and activities to cooperate on animal health issues, particularly at the animal, human and environment interface.
On average, five new human infectious diseases appear every year, three of them coming from animals. For example, African swine fever (ASF), brucellosis or tuberculosis are well-known diseases that affect wildlife and can spread to domestic animals. They also can spread to humans, with 60 percent of these diseases being zoonotic. In this regard, the professionals of the aquatic and terrestrial protected areas, hunters and fishermen are important sentinels to protect animal and human health.
Leaders of the two organizations believe this essential function for health, environment and biodiversity needs to be strengthened and better organized at global, national and local levels. In this context, the agreement signed in early December aims to acknowledge the work already undertaken and to stimulate the implementation of new activities.
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5. Minnesota turkey producer continues recovery [MN]
By Tom Cherveny, Forum News Service
AgWeek.com
January 5, 2016
LITCHFIELD, Minn. - His family has been raising turkeys since 1958, but Greg Langmo will be the first to say there was nothing that could prepare him for the shock and hurt that came when avian influenza struck in April.
The third-generation producer in this family said he watched the disease take out the birds in a barn in as little as three or four days after it was discovered.
It's now eight months after the disease struck their operations in Meeker County, Minn., and Langmo Farms remain in recovery mode.
"I'm probably 60 days from being where we were when it hit,'' said Langmo, of Litchfield, Minn. "We just can't get the number of turkeys we want when we want them.''
Langmo Farms has restocked its affected barns as it could, but some remain empty. The virus also struck breeder farms that produced the poults that growers like Langmo rely on for birds. It's taking time to rebuild the inventory of breeder stock.
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6. USDA and CFIA to Host Regulatory Cooperation Council Stakeholder Teleconference on January 14, 2016
USDA Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service Bulletin
January 5, 2016
The Regulatory Cooperation Council (RCC) was established to enhance cooperation between the United States' and Canada's national authorities, and benefits stakeholders and consumers by aligning approaches to public health, animal health and plant health programs in both countries, while maintaining the existing high level of protection in these areas.
As you might recall, the first meeting of the RCC Regulatory Partnership Committee (RPC) between the Canadian Food Inspection Agency (CFIA) and the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) was held on June 30, 2015. This meeting allowed the RPC to provide a broad overview of the RCC Joint Forward Plan; inform Canadian and U.S. stakeholders of the bilaterally agreed work plans in the areas of meat inspection and certification, plant health, and animal health; and offer you the opportunity to ask questions and provide feedback on these joint initiatives.
Stakeholders and consumers are the key beneficiaries of existing work undertaken in RCC and you play a critical role in shaping future activities between regulators. CFIA and USDA would like to invite you to a Joint RCC conference call on January 14, 2016 at 3:00 pm EST. The main objectives of this discussion will be (1) to provide an update on the implementation of the joint work plans since the last meeting in June and, (2) introduce the 2016-2017 work plan process, and (3) to provide an opportunity for you to ask questions and provide feedback to CFIA and USDA regulators.
Conference Call Preregistration is required: Participants need to preregister for this teleconference at:
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7. USDA Recalls Ground Beef Sold Nationwide
By David Ingram
12NewsNow.com
January 5, 2016
Washington, DC (WLTX) -- Huisken Meat Company is recalling approximately 89,568 pounds of beef products that may be contaminated with wood.
The Sam's Choice Black Angus Vidalia Onion items were produced on various dates between Nov. 19, 2015, and Dec. 9, 2015. The following products are subject to recall:
*2-lb. boxes containing 6 pieces of "Sam's Choice Black Angus Beef Patties with 19% Vidalia � Onion." with Use By dates 05/17/2016; 05/29/2016; and 06/06/2016.
The products subject to recall bear establishment number "EST. 394A" inside the USDA mark of inspection. These items were shipped to retail locations nationwide.
The foreign material originated with an incoming ingredient and was discovered during production.
There have been no confirmed reports of adverse reactions due to consumption of these products. Anyone concerned about an injury or illness should contact a healthcare provider.
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