Namibia confirmed its first foot-and-mouth (FMD) disease outbreak since 1964, disrupting livestock trade and international exports. Meanwhile in Turkiye, FMD serotype A re-emerged near the Iraqi border, confirming circulation of four FMD serotypes in recent years. In Finland, African swine fever (ASF) continues its spread in wild boar and negatively impacting the country’s pork sector. And for the first time in nearly two years, Romania reports an ASF outbreak in a 5,270-head commercial pig farm.
“This brings home the reality that FMD and ASF are active and moving beyond typical borders,” says Dr. Lisa Becton, executive director of the Swine Health Information Center (SHIC). “The World Organization for Animal Health has warned of the need to monitor and assess what interventions are being done, and how country-to-country biosecurity efforts are going.”
As she studies the October Global Disease Monitoring Report, two things stand out.
The FMD outbreak in Cyprus included the virus moving into domestic pigs. She says that’s concerning because it has not been seen in swine in the country for some time.
“It’s a reminder that pigs can be affected,” she says. “FMD can be as devastating as ASF for pigs, so that’s why we’re continuing to watch the spread.”
ASF’s continued spread in wild boar in Finland is concerning.
“They have not identified it in domestic production, but once this gets into wild boar populations, the ability for a country to manage it and get it out of that population really becomes a challenge,” Becton says.
Tighten Farm-Level Defenses
She says this provides a stark warning to U.S. producers. The global risks are significant and mounting.
‘It’s important for our U.S. producers to assess what they’re doing on a day-to-day basis to prevent disease introduction,” Becton says. “A lot of the things that we do for biosecurity can also apply to preventing foreign animal diseases.”
If you travel overseas and you go to areas where these viruses are active, she reminds people to incorporate ample downtime before going back into a U.S. pig farm.
“Don’t wear the same clothing or footwear,” Becton says. “Don’t bring any meat or meat products back into the U.S. or anything that could spread disease. Just be mindful.”
Also, take a look at how you source feed and ingredients. Work with your feed supplier, especially questioning where vitamins and minerals are sourced. Then, determine if you need to take any other steps as a producer to help prevent potential disease introduction via feed.
“Neither of these diseases are in the U.S.,” she emphasizes. “But it’s always important to review what we can do on a preventive basis.”
Now is also the time to make sure you are enrolled in Secure Pork Supply (SPS), Pork Quality Assurance (PQA) Plus, and state/national movement-tracking platforms like AgView to ensure business continuity if an FAD reaches the U.S.
