Page 114 of articles about swine-diseases

Headed by Professor George Milne of the School of Computer Science and Software Engineering, researchers at The University of Western Australia (UWA) have concluded that a classical swine fever outbreak, starting in north Queensland, could spread widely through Australia’s 20 million feral pigs, potentially posing a risk to Australia’s domestic pig population.

The European Food Safety Authority (EFSA), the European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control (ECDC) and the European Medicines Agency (EMEA) have published today a joint Scientific Report on methicillin resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) in livestock, pets and foods.

The OIE has reported 3 new outbreaks of classical swine fever in Rio Grande Do Norte and 1 in Amapá. The three new outbreaks in Rio Grande Do Norte were detected by the surveillance programme and have an epidemiological link with the "Jucurutu 1" outbreak, where animals from the farm considered to be the index farm were introduced. All farms are for self-consumption or local trade. The State of Rio Grande do Norte is located outside the area declared at a national level as free of classical swine fever. The Animal Health Department has approved the vaccination of all pigs of the State of Rio Grande do Norte. Vaccination remains prohibited in the rest of the country. In Amapaá, the affected farm, of a traditional type, is for self-consumption. The State of Amapá is located outside the area declared at a national level as free of classical swine fever. Surveillance and epidemiological investigation are continuing.

The Federal Ministry of Health has confirmed the report that African Swine Fever has been discovered in a certain part of Delta State. Also, the Delta State Ministry of Agriculture has quarantined the affected piggery and has started culling the affected pigs to prevent the disease from spreading to other pigs.

The Russian veterinary authority has sent Follow up Report No. 18 to OIE, reporting no new cases of ASF in pigs. The event is described as 'resolved'.

A bill that would have affected the use of antibiotics in livestock has been defeated by the California Senate by a vote of 20-15. The bill would have required all school districts in California to make every effort to purchase poultry and meat products that had not been treated with non-theraputic anitibiotics. The original bill was even tougher. It would have prohibited schools from serving poultry or meat products from animals that had been treated with antibiotics at any time during the life of the animal.

The U.S. Department of Agriculture today announced that it will make the master seed virus (MSV) for the novel H1N1 flu available to interested veterinary biologics manufacturers.

New cases of classical swine fever in feral pigs in the south of Rhineland-Palatinate have been reported. Accordingly, the plans for eradication and emergency vaccination of feral pigs for classical swine fever need to be applied in that area. Decision 2003/135/EC should therefore be amended accordingly.

Limited cross-reactivity of serum samples from pigs infected U.S swine influenza viruses or vaccinated with commercial vaccines was demonstrated against the new S/O H1N1 influenza virus (A/CA/04/2009) as measured by the standard HI test. The results of this experiment suggest that pre-existing immunity induced by swine influenza viruses circulating in the U.S may not protect pigs against the new S/O H1N1 influenza virus presently circulating in people. Importantly, vaccines currently used to protect pigs in U.S swine operations against swine influenza virus may not be effective against the new S/O H1N1 influenza virus.

Some analysts have predicted that the U.S. pork industry could lose up to $400 million in the next few months, given lower market prices; others estimate that from 25% to 33% of U.S. hog producers may be adversely effected.