Feeding of Garbage to Swine
The word “garbage” is defined as any meat waste, or meat waste combined with any other food waste, resulting from handling, preparation, cooking and consumption of foods, including animal carcasses or parts thereof. Anyone raising swine to be sold for public consumption and feeding garbage must obtain a permit from the Department of Agricultural Resources Division of Animal Health and USDA/APHIS Veterinary Services. The issuance of this permit requires a facility inspection and garbage cooker temperature check. All garbage, regardless of previous processing must be heated to 212 degrees for 30 minutes prior to being fed to swine.
Healthy Animals: Guidance for Exhibitors at Fairs
State Urges Swine Owners to Tighten On-Farm Disease Prevention Practices
Porcine Epidemic Diarrhea Advisory
Porcine Epidemic Diarrhea (PEDv) virus has been found on a swine breeding farm in Massachusetts. PEDv is a corona virus that is highly contagious in swine. Large numbers of virus are shed in infected pig feces, with the result that the virus can be spread easily through routine swine movements and ordinary animal management practices, causing the disease to move through a herd within days. The disease has caused major problems and economic losses in the commercial swine industry and has been reported in at least 36 states since the beginning of the outbreak
PEDv is a coronavirus that affects pigs only and is similar to Transmissible Gastroenteritis. It does not make people sick and it does not affect other species of livestock. PEDv does not affect pork safety and pork remains completely safe to eat.
The first detection of this disease in the U.S. occurred approximately one year ago, and since then it has impacted over 4,000 premises in 27 states. The Vermont case represents the first confirmed positive premises in New England. The most common sign of PEDv in swine is severe diarrhea, and mortality rates in pre-weaning piglets approach 100%. Older animals generally survive the infection but can shed the virus in their feces and through their respiratory tracts for an extended period.
Swine producers are encouraged to monitor for information coming from national industry groups such as the American Association of Swine Veterinarians (AASV) and the National Pork Board (NPB). More information on disease prevention and other facts about PEDv can be found on the following websites: