Foreign animal disease preparedness top of mind at Iowa Pork Congress

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Foreign animal disease preparedness top of mind at Iowa Pork Congress

Foreign animal disease preparedness is the number one issue at Iowa Pork Congress in Des Moines.

Iowa Pork Producers Association president Kevin Rasmussen of Goldfield says foreign animal diseases pose a constant threat to pig farmers.

“I can’t stress enough how important it is to have your premise ID’s current and up to date, with the information on the pig owners correct, the caretaker’s correct, and the site owner’s correct.”

He tells Brownfield that’s because the U.S. must respond swiftly and accurately in the face of an outbreak.

“The number one thing that we’ve got to do is get back to our export markets, and information and flow of information is going to be key.”

Rasmussen says if a foreign disease like African swine fever was found in the U.S., pork exports would screech to a halt.

“So we need to prove to our export customers that we can contain this, control it, and eradicate it as fast as possible.”

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