The University of Minnesota College of Veterinary Medicine (CVM) is launching three high-impact research initiatives, supported by the National Pork Board, to tackle critical operational challenges across the swine industry—focusing on national biosecurity, viral disease control, and international benchmarking.
Together, these complementary projects address three of the most pressing challenges in modern pork production.
Mapping Biosecurity Strengths and Gaps Across the Nation
Igor Paploski, assistant professor in the Department of Veterinary Population Medicine, is leading a nationwide effort to evaluate biosecurity practices across every corner of the swine industry. By looking at everything from large commercial facilities to show pigs and small-scale operations, the project will establish a realistic, data-driven picture of how biosecurity practices are used across different types of farms.
The research moves beyond measuring basic compliance to dig into the real-world challenges producers face on the ground. The research team will pinpoint high-risk gaps and explore the practical and economic reasons why certain protocols are difficult to put into practice. Ultimately, the project will provide producers of every scale with tailored, actionable tools to fix vulnerable gaps and better protect herd health.
Decoding Immunization Strategies Against PRRSV-2
PRRSV-2 remains one of the swine industry’s most costly threats due to its ability to rapidly evolve and persist in herds. While producers commonly use modified live vaccines or live virus exposure to build immunity—and often add killed vaccine boosters during an outbreak—it remains unclear how combining these methods impacts the virus’s ability to mutate or spread. Kim VanderWaal, associate professor in the Department of Veterinary Population Medicine, and Nakarin Pamornchainavakul, a researcher in the lab who co-authored the grant, are heading a study to determine how different immunization strategies influence viral transmission, evolution, and long-term persistence.
By monitoring pigs under field-like outbreak conditions, the team will evaluate six distinct immunization protocols to measure viral mutation rates, recombination, and whether the virus continues to spread to new animals introduced late in an outbreak. Ultimately, the project will deliver clear, practical guidelines for producers to maximize vaccine protection, clear the virus faster, and prevent new variants from emerging.
Comparing International Practices to Lower Swine Mortality
Rachel Schambow, senior program coordinator and researcher in the Center for Animal Health and Food Safety, and Mark Schwartz, assistant professor in the Department of Veterinary Population Medicine, are launching a comparative study to evaluate production practices, industry characteristics, and policies across countries that face disease pressures similar to the U.S. pork industry, but consistently report lower mortality rates. By examining structural differences, management strategies, and regional health approaches, the project aims to identify the specific factors associated with higher pig survivability under shared health challenges.
Working closely with U.S. swine industry stakeholders, the research team will evaluate these identified practices to assess their practical feasibility and address potential barriers to adoption within domestic production systems. Additionally, the project will establish a reproducible assessment framework, providing the U.S. industry with an ongoing, science-backed tool to adapt effective global strategies, reduce mortality, and support long-term herd resilience.
A Vision for Swine Industry Resilience
By addressing biosecurity protocols on individual farms, viral genetics at the population level, and production efficiency across global markets, these three studies provide a valuable roadmap for advancing the U.S. pork industry. Supported by the National Pork Board, University of Minnesota researchers are providing producers with the actionable data required to safeguard herd health and maintain market competitiveness.
“Together, these three projects embody our goal of bringing rigorous, science-driven solutions directly to swine producers,” said Montserrat Torremorell, chair of CVM’s Department of Veterinary Population Medicine, “Thanks to the support of the National Pork Board, our researchers are uncovering actionable insights that will directly protect pig health, strengthen animal welfare, and reinforce the long-term sustainability and economic resilience of the U.S. pork industry.”
