Pork industry preparedness for FAD was the first topic on the schedule at the Boehringer Ingelheim North Carolina swine seminar this year – and no, FAD does not mean the latest social trend.
“FADs are foreign animal diseases,” said Dr. Lisa Becton with the National Pork Board. “Those are diseases that currently don’t exist in the United States and diseases we don’t want to come here.”
Becton says being prepared is important for a number of reasons. “Trade is a big issue. We want to make sure that we don’t have trade disruption because if an FAD does get to the U.S., that’s the first thing that’s going to happen,” she said.
Preparedness involves several key elements. “Just people having a premises identification for their farm, doing disease surveillance, and working with a veterinarian if they see something unusual and report it early,” said Becton.
Learn more in this interview with Dr. Becton: Interview with Dr. Lisa Becton, National Pork Board