Special Report

World Pork Expo focus on animal health

The 2015 World Pork Expo is this week and the Executive Director of the Minnesota Pork Board says producers will be focusing on animal health.

“Whether its PRRS or PEDv, I think some of the lessons that have come with avian influenza here in Minnesota and in Iowa especially, there is going to be a lot of discussion about disease preparedness.”

David Preisler tells Brownfield there are substantially fewer incidents of PEDv in Minnesota than a year or two ago, but there are still producers dealing with it.

Preisler says there are two primary ways of protecting herds from the virus.

“One is really intense biosecurity.  We’ve seen some farms build their own truck washes for example.  There’s a lot of interest in farms building them in the future if they can.”

And there are some management techniques that Preisler says include controlled exposure and ways to boost immunity in the herds.

World Pork Expo runs Wednesday through Friday at the Iowa State Fairgrounds in Des Moines.