The George A. Young Swine Conference will be held for the 46th consecutive year on Thursday, August 11 at the Marina Inn in South Sioux City, Nebr. The conference program focuses on PRRS eradication and control. Topics include PRRS transmission and biosecurity, depopulation and rollover techniques, ongoing PRRS research, eradication experiences, and PRRS risk assessment for swine production sites. Program details and registration information are available at http://georgeyoungswineconference.unl.edu/. For more information, contact Sharon Clowser, Conference Coordinator, Department of Veterinary and Biomedical Sciences, 151 Veterinary Diagnostic Center, P.O. Box 830907, University of Nebraska-Lincoln, Lincoln, NE 68583-0907, Tel. 402/472-8550; Fax 402/472-3094; E-mail address: sclowser2@unl.edu
Monthly Archives: May 2005
“Canadian Food Inspection Agency Proposed Bill C-27 “”Enforcement Act”””
The creation of the Canadian Food Inspection Agency (CFIA) in 1997 was intended to improve and modernize Canadian federal inspection activities that are related to food safety, animal health and plant protection. It was recognized from the outset that the modernization of the CFIA’s legislative base would be an important next step. The CFIA is currently responsible for the administration and/or enforcement of 10 different acts that deal with the regulation of food and of animals and plants and their products. The CFIA’s inspection powers and enforcement authorities vary from Act to Act.This can obviously lead to inefficiencies for CFIA staff and confusion for regulated parties with respect to the CFIA enforcement capabilities.
Voluntary country-of-origin bill unveiled in House
House Agriculture Committee chairman Bob Goodlatte (R., Va.) introduced bipartisan legislation Wednesday for a voluntary country-of-origin labeling (V-COOL) program for beef, pork and lamb sold in the U.S. If enacted, V-COOL would replace mandatory country-of-origin labeling only for meat, which is required to begin Sept. 30, 2006. Specifically, this act will permit retailers to label beef, pork and lamb as products of the U.S. if they are derived exclusively from animals born, raised and slaughtered in the U.S. The National Meat Assn., American Meat Institute, National Pork Producers Council and National Cattlemen’s Beef Assn. all support the V-COOL proposal. It is sure to spark yet another confrontation with R-CALF, the grassroots cattle industry group that fought hard for mandatory COOL during the 2002 farm bill debate. The bill, H.R. 2068, has 34 House co-sponsors. If enacted in the House, it will face a challenge in the Senate, which has shown great reluctance to reopen the farm bill.
Recommendations to Prevent Disease Associated with Human-Animal Contact
The National Association of State Public Health Veterinarians (NASPHV) has published a compendium of recommendations to provide guidelines governing human exposure to animal diseases resulting from contact in public venues. These recommendations have been endorsed by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). The compendium describes recent outbreaks of disease associated with interactions at venues such as petting zoos, state fairs, circuses, farm tours, educational exhibits, etc. The discussion addresses a number of zoonotic diseases such as E. coli O157, Salmonella and ringworm. Recommendations are provided to address issues such as transition areas between animals and humans, proper veterinary care, education of venue operators, exhibitors and visitors, and, most importantly, emphasizes hand washing as the single most effective method to limit disease transmission. The full report can be viewed at
FMD in Pigs in the Philippines
Foot-and-Mouth Disease has been discovered in a slaughter plant in Baguio City, Philippines. The disease was first recognized in February, 2005. Since then 28 hogs have died of FMD at the slaughter plant according to a report in Sun.Star on April 30th. No new cases have been recorded since April 18th. The slaughter plant will be quarantined for 30 days for cleaning and disinfection. However, the plant will remain open during this period for “buyers of goats, butchers and employees of the City Veterinary Office”. According to the report, animals brought to the plant overnight will be “butchered, inspected and brought to the city market for sale”.
Swine practitioners: please submit seed data for NCVEI benchmarking tools
The National Commission on Veterinary Economic Issues (NCVEI) is collecting seed data in preparation for the release of benchmarking tools for large animal and mixed practices. Please help by going to the seed data website and providing information about your practice to help get this project up and running. All information is kept confidential. Once the seed data collection process is complete, the NCVEI will release a complete set of benchmarking tools for use – free of charge – by large and mixed animal practitioners who are AVMA or AAHA members. To assist with this project, please follow the instructions below:
The HSUS and George Washington University Law School Announce New Animal Law Clinic
WASHINGTON — As a growing number of law schools across the country add animal law to their curriculum, The Humane Society of the United States (HSUS) and George Washington University Law School (GW Law School) today announced the creation of the Animal Law Litigation Project, a joint venture that will improve enforcement of the nation’s animal protection laws by giving students clinical experience representing the interests of animals in the courts. The clinic will offer a select group of highly qualified GW Law School students a chance to work side-by-side with The HSUS’s experienced legal staff on cutting edge animal protection cases. Clinical students will enroll in a new course at GW Law School — Animal Law Lawyering — and receive credit for their work on federal and state court cases to protect whales, dolphins, manatees, and other wildlife, to improve the treatment of performing animals and animals used in research, and to prevent the systematic mistreatment of animals in factory farms.
SafePork 2005 paper submission deadline extended to May 10
The paper submission deadline for SafePork 2005, the 6th International Symposium on the Epidemiology and Control of Foodborne Pathogens in Pork, has been extended to May 10, 2005. Papers can be submitted at http://www.SafePork2005.org. If you have already submitted a paper and wish to confirm that it has been received, please email a request for confirmation including the title of the paper and your contact information to SafePork2005@Porkboard.org.