ASF

NPPC’S CEO VISITS PORK CONGRESS

A highlight at this year’s OPC was the keynote speaker, Bryan Humphreys, CEO of the National Pork Producers Council (NPPC), who offered a multi-faceted presentation on top issues facing the U.S. pork industry. He covered various hot topics such as Prop 12, workforce needs, and foreign animal disease preparation.

• We must be ready to go to a “containment” mode when a disease such as African swine fever (ASF) were to reach the U.S. This is why your farm’s specific biosecurity plan must be implemented, which will severely restrict people and animal flow in/out of a site. This is why it’s critical to know where the zones are such as infected, control, buffer, etc.

• You must know the clinical signs of diseases such as ASF now to know what to look for and to contact your veterinarian and the state vet office as necessary.

• If depopulation is necessary, you must be prepared far in advance. Method, site space, equipment, biological containment (blood,etc.), labor, etc., must all be considered before it’s needed. Relying on a landfill site will likely be difficult, while composting requires a carbon source, which must be secured before the outbreak.

• To be better prepared for a foreign animal disease, producers are encouraged to use RABapp (access via Google), an online platform to help farm’s develop their Secure Pork Supply biosecurity plans.