Hog
industry leaders from the United States and Canada have begun discussions on
cross-border biosecurity.
Those
involved so far are the U.S. National Pork Board, American Association of Swine
Veterinarians, Ontario Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs,
Canadian Pork Council, packing industry representatives and transportation experts.
They are
hoping to involve assembly yards and others whose participation could improve
biosecurity.
With the
lessons of porcine epidemic diarrhea and other disease transmission fresh in
their memories, they hope to capture the urgency felt across the swine industry
to prevent pathogens from being carried back to the farm from first points of
concentration, where they must be contained, said Paul Sundberg, executive
director of Canada’s Swine Health Information Centre.