We Can’t Ignore the Real Costs of PRRS Any Longer
Why is the pork industry living with porcine reproductive and respiratory syndrome (PRRS)? Although PRRS incidences look lower so far this year, experts say it’s not something to get excited about yet.
“This year is a bit unique,” Pipestone’s Cara Haden, DVM, said at the Ohio Pork Congress. “Instead of living with PRRS, many farms have gone ahead and depopulated and repopulated instead of living with and doing a PRRS elimination. The truth is PRRS is not new, and it is not going to go away on its own.”
This devastating virus is making it challenging for the U.S. to claim to be the “absolute best in the world,” Haden says. For example, Denmark producers 36.8 pigs per sow per year, while the U.S. is at 27.35. When up to 40% of U.S. pig farms break with PRRS every year, that has a real impact on numbers, Haden says.
In addition, the U.S. has the worst finishing mortality of any of the major swine producing companies.
“We need to take that very seriously. Being dead last in the world for finishing mortality is not something that the United States swine industry should be proud of,” Haden adds. “The U.S. has a lot of work to do when it comes to PRRS. We have not made a lot of progress in the last 12 years, things have actually gotten worse from a PRRS standpoint.
What is the Cost of PRRS?
In 2021, Derald Holtkamp at Iowa State University came out with a study estimating that PRRS costs the U.S. pork industry $664 million a year. Pipestone Management Company recently gathered data and estimated that PRRS costs their system about $200 per sow per year.
“If you're looking at a 5,000-sow farm, that's a million dollars – just at the sow farm level alone,” Haden says. “On grow-finish, if we look at average daily gain, adjusted feed conversion and percent tops, we are looking at $13.64 per head for a PRRS-positive group in the finishing base.”
Pipestone estimates the cost of PRRS is closer to $1 billion a year now.
It's More Than Money
Economics aside, Haden says there is a very real cost of PRRS when it comes to pigs, people and public perception.
For example, when you go out to the sow barn to feed and no sows get up, that’s proof that PRRS is affecting the quality of a sow’s life. “If we're looking at how the pig feels and are trying to tell consumers that we're doing a good job caring for these pigs, PRRS is a really difficult story,” she points out.
In addition, the people who care for the pigs are feeling it, too.
“Raising pigs is really fun when pigs are healthy – when we go to the barn and take care of issues, check on the environment, treat a couple of pigs and make sure our pigs are doing good,” Haden says. “It is not fun when we have to drag out dead pigs, inject pigs that are sick, and reshuffle our sort pen because it's full again.”
And the next generation is watching, she says. “I talk to a lot of young farmers who say, ‘If this is what it's like, I frankly don't know that I'm interested in doing this for the rest of my career.’”
The public’s perception of PRRS is another impact that can’t be discounted.
“The public doesn't look at us and go, ‘Oh, these poor farmers, what a tough disease. That's a bummer for them.’ No, the public looks at it and goes, ‘What are pig farmers doing wrong? Is this a terrible environment?’” Haden says. “We have to take this really seriously as an industry – 20% of pigs should not die from PRRS.”
What Can We Do About It?
Haden says the tools in the PRRS toolbox for pig farmers are constantly evolving. She encourages producers to consider how these tools could be put to use on their operation.
1. Whole Genome Sequencing
Historically, diagnosticians have just looked at ORF5 on the PRRS virus. But that’s a very small amount of the virus when we just look at ORF5, she says. Research shows differences when you look at the entire genome, like a PRRS break involves more viruses than first thought – up to four different viruses.
“This is teaching us that we should be managing for more than one virus. Also, the more viruses involved in the break, the longer the time period you need to eliminate this virus,” she says.
Research also shows that where two PRRS viruses coexist, they can make a third PRRS virus.
“Next generation sequencing has taught us quite a bit. With better tools, we can make better decisions,” Haden says. “As a veterinarian, I love this tool, because I know what's going on now. I can do things if I know what's going on. If I'm in the dark, and I don't realize we have another virus, then I'm not going to act accordingly.”
2. Next-Generation Biosecurity
From direct routes (pigs and semen) and indirect routes (mechanical, fomite-based) to aerosol and feed biosecurity, next-generation biosecurity layers prevention protocols together and applies it under the watchful eyes of trained inspectors and auditors.
During a retrospective study, Scott Dee, emeritus director of research at Pipestone, and his team recently discovered disease pressure is significantly associated with the level of biosecurity on the farm.
“In 2009, Pipestone had a 50% PRRS incidence rate. Since we put all of these biosecurity measures in place, for the last two to three years, we've been below 10%,” Haden says. “Next-generation biosecurity can work in our system, we've taken it from 50% to below 10% by putting those measures in place.”
3. Regional and National PPRS Elimination Programs
Haden urges producers to take a closer look at what other nations are doing right as they work toward PRRS elimination. She says there are two important questions to ask. The first is, do we have the resources in U.S. to do this? Although she argues the industry did not have the resources years ago, there are new resources in place that give her more hope.
“For example, U.S. Swine Health Improvement Plan (US SHIP) is an awesome program,” she adds. “We now have an established group of producers, veterinarians, key shareholders, along with the U.S. government, who are working together for support of swine health.
The other question on her mind is do we have enough political will? Do producers want change to happen?
“Swine veterinarians are hungry for disease elimination. We are so sick of dealing with the same four diseases, and we are ready to do something about it,” she says. “But do producers feel the same? Producers are critical to help make regional and national elimination programs work.”
4. PRRS-Resistant Pig
Haden is not affiliated with PIC, but she says she couldn’t discuss new tools in fighting PRRS without bringing up the PRRS-resistant pig. Can we do something from a genetic standpoint to get rid of PRRS?
“The fascinating thing about viruses is they cannot cause disease if they don't have a place to bind,” she says. “In the pig, we've learned that CD163 receptor is where PRRS lands, and once it binds there, it can start to replicate and cause disease. This group’s gene editing process just pulls that gene out so CD163 is no longer there. Now, PRRS has no place to land, and so it can't cause disease.”
Haden believes it’s important for the pork industry to understand the difference between gene editing and genetically modified organisms so they can share that message with consumers.
“We want consumers to trust the pork supply,” she says. “We don't want them to get confused about genetically modified versus gene editing. Market acceptance is a huge deal, and we need to have market acceptance for this to move forward.”
What Can You Do Now?
When it comes to fighting PRRS, Haden outlines three strategies producers could implement.
Strategy 1: Sit and wait.
“Producers can say, ‘Okay, hopefully, there's going to be more tools. Hopefully, this PRRS-resistant pig works. Maybe there will be a better vaccine coming or more research. Let's just wait and see if somebody else can solve our problems in the U.S. pork industry.’ There is promise here, but the sit-on-our-hands-and-wait strategy is not one I recommend.”
Strategy 2: Get on board with regionalization and national programs.
“Veterinarians can be excited, and US SHIP can be in place. However, we can’t do this if producers are not excited. Producers need to be knocking down the door saying, ‘I'm sick of this, let's get rid of this virus.’ If you want to get rid of it, if there's a regionalization program in your area, get on board and sign up to do the testing. Show up at the meetings. If producers don't engage, it's not going to happen.”
Strategy 3: Focus on what you can do today.
“What are things that producers can do today on the farm? From next-generation biosecurity to whole genome sequencing, those are things you can do now to help make a difference. There's a lot of low-hanging fruit in this biosecurity area. Pipestone has proven through research there are things within your control at your farm.”
This is why she believes strategy three is a good place to start.
“We must do something about PRRS. It is imperative for our pigs from a welfare standpoint, for the good of the people who work with our pigs and for public perception of the pork industry,” she explains. “Remember, it’s the people in this room who are the ones that can change.”
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