BANFF, Alta. – A circovirus epidemic that cost Canadian hog producers $200 million in lost sales prompted the formation of a national swine health program.
“The charge was to make things better so we don’t get caught like this again. That is a tall order,” said Robert Harding, executive director of the
Canadian Swine Health Board. A coalition of veterinarians, universities, pork organizations, governments and producers formed the board to develop disease surveillance and national biosecurity standards to protect the industry from the next costly disease.
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Canada is free of World Trade Organization-listed swine diseases, but devastating problems such as circovirus or porcine reproductive and respiratory syndrome (PRRS) need attention at the domestic level, Harding told the Banff Pork Seminar Jan. 19.
The board stemmed from a $76 million national initiative to control hog diseases. About half the money was spent on a circovirus inoculation program, which was launched in November 2007 and completed in December 2008.
Deaths and condemnations caused by circovirus affected 1.75 million hogs from 2000 to 2006.
The remaining money will be spent developing national biosecurity programs, emerging disease research and long-term disease risk management.
An international review of the national swine farm level biosecurity standard will be conducted before it is released to the public.
A national survey assessed the level of biosecurity in Canada and what needs to be done to strengthen it. Pilot projects will be set up to assess the standard in different production systems and regions.
Research priorities are also being developed to study circovirus, PRRS, and other emerging diseases. PRRS is considered an emerging disease because it keeps mutating and is economically devastating.
Six post doctorial fellowships are offered across Canada and each is working on a specialized area of research.
Surveillance and outbreak detection systems have been identified as critical tools for pig health management.
“We have got a lot of systems that don’t work well or don’t talk to one another, so we have recognized that as something that needs to be worked on,” Harding said.
