(KMAland) — While the United States does not have African Swine Fever inside its borders, it is important to study the issues surrounding this disease.
National Pork Board Director of Swine Health Dr. Pam Zaabel says research projects have been funded.
“We’re funding them through a collaborative effort with the National Pork Board and the Swine Health Information Center, who’s received funding through the Foreign Ag Service, and the project’s total is right around $2 million.”
Vietnam has had ASF for the past year and a half. Zaabel says valuable research is taking place in Vietnam that could benefit the U.S. swine industry.
“There are a lot of projects being funded and some of those dealing with things like the inactivation of the ASF, or the African Swine Fever Virus, in compost piles. We’re trying to get a better understanding of ASF survival in pig manure, and we’re looking at the accuracy of tests for ASF antibody detection. We’d like to know how those work and how those could be used in an ASF surveillance and response program here in the United States if the virus made its way here. Different tests looking at improving the different diagnostic tests that are available. That includes the antibody detection test, and we’re also looking at improving PCR tests that look for the virus, as well as any oral fluid diagnostics so that we would have those as a tool in case it made its way here. There are also several projects looking at how the virus is spreading in Vietnam and how to improve biosecurity there, things that we could apply here and implement on our farms in the United States as far as biosecurity measures.”
The Pork Checkoff is collaborating with researchers and veterinarians on this valuable research in Vietnam. For more information, producers can contact the Pork Checkoff Service Center. Go to Pork-dot org or call 800-456-PORK.
