Posted June 9, 2014
The
United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) announced a $26.2
million fund to fight porcine epidemic diarrhea virus
(PEDv) and porcine deltacoronavirus (PDCoV), according to USDA press release
available here. The Wall
Street Journal also published an article here, Reuters here, and
Bloomberg here. A recent
blog post was published on PEDv here.
These diseases do not pose a threat
to human health or food safety, but they have a significant impact on pork
producers.
"In
the last year, industry has estimated PEDv has killed some 7 million piglets
and caused tremendous hardship for many American pork producers," said
Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack. "The number of market-ready hogs this
summer could fall by more than 10 percent relative to 2013 because of PEDv. Together
with industry and our State partners, the steps we will take through the
Federal Order will strengthen the response to PEDv and these other viruses and
help us lessen the impact to producers."
The
federal order requires producers, veterinarians, laboratories, or any others
aware of the disease’s presence, to report all cases to the USDA and
animal-health officials. Failure to comply will result in potential fines or
other penalties, according to The Wall Street
Journal.
The
$26.2 million in federal funding will support the development of disease
vaccines and testing, management, and control activities at the state and
federal levels.
"More
money may be needed in the future, but $26 million in an environment like we
have right now is new money," said Howard Hill, president of the National
Pork Producers Council and an Iowa hog farmer, according to Reuters.
The
USDA has not yet identified the cause of PEDv, which makes it harder to
eradicate, according to Bloomberg.
For full details of the Federal
Order and program requirements, along with a Q&A on this topic, visit the Animal
and Plant Health Inspection Service website here.
For more information on animal
feeding operations, please visit the National Agricultural Law Center’s website
here.
