Antibiotics score card hits burger chains

A survey of fast-food hamburger joints has posted a failing grade for 22 of 25 for failing to use beef raised without antibiotics.

It’s the fourth annual Chain Reaction report and only Shake Shack and BurgerFi won an A grade.

Wendy’s got a D. McDonald’s flunked.

Chain Reaction said beef raised with help from antibiotics makes them less useful for human medicine.

The National Cattlemen’s Association countered that it advises its members to practice judicious use of antibiotics.

                           

Pig barns deteriorating too fast

A survey of farmers and barn builders has revealed that approximately 60 per cent of producers struggle with rapid deterioration of their barns and equipment.

Half of the respondents said their barn rooves and pen stalls are deteriorating too fast. Forty per cent said exterior walls and 30 per cent said ceilings, trusses and other stuff in attics are deteriorating too fast.

There were no reports of serious issues with partition walls between two rooms, manure and drainage system, and barn foundations, according to the survey conducted by the Prairie Swine Centre and the University of Saskatchewan.

Ventilation appears to be the cause of the rapid deterioration. 

Often farmers turn down ventilation during cold and windy days, which leaves moist air circulating inside the barns.

African Swine Fever prompts caution

Hog farmers and feed companies are being urged to take precautions against African Swine Fever, a highly-contagious and deadly disease that is hitting hog farms in China and wild boar populations in Europe.

As of Wednesday this week, China has confirmed that a 10th region, Shanxi province, has reported African swine fever in a domestic herd. 

Since the first cases emerged in Liaoning province in early August tens of thousands of pigs have been culled and trade restrictions have been set to prevent the spread of the virus. 

China has banned imports of pigs, wild boar and pork products from Belgium, Bulgaria, Japan and Moldova, as ASF cases emerged in these countries, reports news agency Reuters.

ASF cases continue to hit the headlines in China: four new cases were reported in Liaoning within a few days of each other, one of which occurred on a 19,938-head farm, one on a 1,571-head farm and another in a city-based, 161-head herd.

Now that the virus has begun to hit larger farms, there is fear is that the virus might be out of control,  reports PigSite, an online news service.

In Europe, dozens of ASF-infected wild boar have been found dead in rural Luxembourg , and the Belgian government has endorsed pre-emptive culls in the contaminated zone, to prevent the virus reaching larger domestic herds. 

The capacity of wild boar to rapidly travel large distances and negotiate difficult terrain has also worried other countries in the region, sparking a number of trade sanctions and containment measures. 

For example, France recently announced plans to build a fence along its border with Belgium.

South Korea and China have banned all pig, boar and pork product imports from Belgian suppliers.

Plant breeders want more money

Plant breeders, which includes the giant agri-businesses such as Syngenta and Monsanto, want farmers to give them more money.

Through their Canadian Seed Trade Association, they have been asking the federal government for legislation to impose fees on farmers.

Government consultations will start next month and be held in Winnipeg, Saskatoon, Edmonton and Ottawa, said Todd Hyra, president of the Canadian Seed Trade Association and business manager for Secan for Western Canada.

No dates or specific places have been announced.

Farmers are already paying a royalty on pedigreed seed, but  said that’s not enough to encourage the level of plant breeding required to keep Canadian farmers competitive.

There are two ways farmers could be paying more. One is to pay when they deliver grain. The other is to pay every year for the varieties they intend to grow from saved seed.

“Most other countries in the world are using one of those forms now to incent investment,” Hyra is quoted in an article by Manitoba Cooperator.

                           

Seven piglets are resistant to TGE

Seven piglets which have one edited gene have been born resistant to Transmissible TGE Virus (TGE), a deadly intestinal disease.

A team of researchers from the University of Missouri (MU), Kansas State University (KSU) and Genus plc bred the pigs.

Kristin Whitworth, co-author on the study and a research scientist in MU’s division of Animal Sciences, said “breeding pigs with genetic resistance will help to ease “ financial losses. 

“In terms of animal welfare, if we can prevent these pigs from getting sick, we have a responsibility to do so,” she also said.

Previous research identified an enzyme called ANPEP as a potential receptor for the virus, meaning it could be an important factor in allowing the virus to take hold in pigs, said Randall Prather, distinguished professor of animal sciences in the College of Agriculture, Food and Natural Resources at MU. 

“We were able to breed a litter of pigs that did not produce this enzyme, and as a result, they did not get sick when we exposed them to the virus,” Prather said.

More markets open for livestock

Canada has secured trade deals that open markets in the Philippines for cattle, sheep and goats.

The Canadian Livestock Genetics Association estimates the market for cattle is $8 million, and exports of sheep and goat genetics to Indonesia and the Philippines add up to $100,000 annually.

The Canadian cattle and genetics will also contribute to rural economic development efforts, said a news release from Agriculture Minister Lawrence MacAulay. 

Millions of birds lost in hurricane

Hurricane Michael, which swept through Florida and Georgia, took a toll of more than two million chickens.

Hurricane Florence, which came from the other direction earlier, killed more than 3.1 million chickens and more than 5,500 hogs in North Carolina.

The Georgia Department of Agriculture reported that at least 90 chicken barns were destroyed or significantly damaged and more than two million chickens were lost. 

Farms, dairies and processing plants in 10 Georgia counties were impacted by Michael, which made landfall in the Florida Panhandle as a Category 4 storm and moved north and east last week. 

Poultry contributes $23 billion toward Georgia’s annual economy, the agency says.

Cotton crops were wiped out in large areas of Alabama and Georgia.

Alabama lost 2,000 pullets and 31,000 broilers to Michael, with three broiler houses completely destroyed and between 50 and 75 chicken houses experiencing slight to moderate damage.

The state’s poultry industry contributes $15 billion in revenue annually and represents 65.5 percent of Alabama’s annual farming revenue, the state’s poultry association said.

North Carolina lawmakers have set aside $794 million in additional Hurricane Florence relief funding, bringing the total disaster recovery commitments to $850 million.

South and North Carolina and Virginia agricultural agencies also have not yet released information on Hurricane Michael’s impact on poultry operations.