We’re joined again by Commissioner Steve Troxler. Commissioner, I know that biosecurity is something you take very seriously, but it’s not just the farmers who can take steps. I know you’ve recently put some information out to help communicate to other people who may be coming onto a farm site. Can you talk to us about that?
“Well, certainly. You know, biosecurity remains the first line of defense against a number of animal diseases, and we’ve seen, you know, with highly pathogenic avian influenza, how important this is. But, you know, there are other animal diseases out there that biosecurity can also help stop. And you’re right — it’s not just the farmers. You think about feed trucks coming onto a farm or disposal trucks coming onto a farm, just normal everyday traffic. But one that we had not thought a lot about is utility trucks that come onto the farm — you know, it could be to read the meter, it could be to do some maintenance work. Everybody that comes onto these farms and animal operations needs to be aware of what biosecurity is now.”
Could you give us some examples? As I understand it, it could be as easy as someone stepping on something or picking up something on their clothing.
“Absolutely. We even saw, in the beginning, a case where a farmer had cut a field where there had been ducks and geese grazing, and the dust that he kicked up was pulled into the house through the ventilation fans and caused a widespread outbreak. So this stuff is highly contagious. We’re talking primarily about poultry here, but our hog industry is also very large here, and we’ve got some diseases that are just as epidemic as the high path. So we’ve got to be vigilant in the hog houses too.”
Are there places you can find more information about this online?
“Yes, we have put this information up on the website, which is the NCDA and CS Veterinary Division website, and that’s ncagr.gov.”