AnimalNet Aug. 21/08
AUSTRALIAN
farms face 'agro-terror' attack threat
AUSTRALIA:
Qld Government under pressure to declare outbreak
AUSTRALIA:
CSIRO scientists working to develop a Hendra vaccine
MEXICO blocks
Alberta cattle
KANSAS: Rapid
test for pathogens developed by K-State researchers could be
used to detect diseases used by bioterrorists
NEW JERSEY:
Oystermen concerned after DEP restricts shellfishing
BRITISH
COLUMBIA: Fisheries officials concerned mud snails may
threaten Vancouver Island native fish
AUSTRALIAN
Quarantine and Inspection Service updates its border testing
of imported seafood
UK:
Northumberland warned of Bluetongue change
WYOMING: Feds
give rancher more time to consider slaughter
COLORADO:
American Human Association signs exclusive agreement with
HS3 Technologies to further farming standards
LETTER:
Horses deserve better end than slaughterhouse
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AUSTRALIAN
farms face 'agro-terror' attack threat
21.aug.08
The Canberra Times
David McLennan
http://www.canberratimes.com.au/news/local/news/general/australian-farms-face-agroterror-attack-threat/1250048.aspx
Australian agriculture's strength of being relatively
disease-free also makes the nation more vulnerable to a
terrorist attack on the sector, a report warns.
An Australian Strategic Policy Institute analysis issued
this week said little consideration had been given to
threats to the agriculture sector, which was an integral
part of the Australian economy responsible for 4per cent of
gross domestic product.
''A major disease outbreak in the agricultural sector,
therefore, would have substantial economic repercussions
from the farmyard to the kitchen table,'' author Carl
Ungerer said.
He pointed to the inquiry into last year's equine influenza
outbreak and its finding that there were ''continuing
vulnerabilities in Australia's biosecurity systems''.
''Fixing these systemic problems is a high priority.''
Australia's status as being free of most agricultural
diseases meant an attack would have a greater impact.
AUSTRALIA:
Qld Government under pressure to declare outbreak
21.aug.08
The Australian
Andrew Fraser
http://www.theaustralian.news.com.au/story/0,25197,24217598-601,00.html
The death overnight of a Brisbane vet from Hendra virus has
put pressure on the Queensland Government to declare an
outbreak of the disease.
Veterinarian Ben Cunneen, who entered hospital five weeks
ago with "flu-like" symptoms after treating an infected
horse at the Redlands Veterinary Clinic on Brisbane's
bayside, died during the night at Brisbane's Princess
Alexandra Hospital.
Dr Cunneen, aged in his early 30s, was married with no
children.
The outbreak of the disease was first detected on the clinic
five weeks ago and three horses were put down.
A veterinary nurse is still in hospital after also being
exposed to the disease, while a government vet is undergoing
testing after pricking herself with a needle at the clinic
last week.
AUSTRALIA:
CSIRO scientists working to develop a Hendra vaccine
22.aug.08
The Australian
Adam Cresswell
http://www.theaustralian.news.com.au/story/0,25197,24221774-5006786,00.html
Hendra virus seemingly came out of nowhere when it was first
isolated in 1994, after killing Queensland trainer Vic Rail
and 14 of his horses.
Since then it has made regular reappearances with little
warning.
A total of six people are known to have become infected
since it was discovered - in each case after close contact
with horses - and three have died.
In people it causes a flu-like illness that can lead to
pneumonia. Another possible consequence is encephalitis, an
inflammation of the brain that causes headaches, fever and
coma.
Originally called equine morbillivirus, Hendra is not
entirely strange and new: it is part of the same family as
measles.
No vaccine yet exists for the Hendra virus, as it was
renamed after the Brisbane suburb where it was first
identified.
Work continues to develop a vaccine at the CSIRO's
Australian Animal Health Laboratory in Geelong, where Hendra
is subject to level 4 biohazard containment rules, putting
it in the most dangerous category of infectious agents.
The tiny number of human cases means there is limited
understanding of its effects on the body. For example, while
it is thought people who recover after infection clear the
virus from their cells, one of the three victims of the
illness died of a Hendra-related brain inflammation about a
year after he had apparently recovered.
Hendra is hard for either horses or humans to contract.
"It's an emerging virus, but it's not seen as an emerging
threat, because it doesn't seem as though it's easily spread
to humans," said virologist Bill Rawlinson.
MEXICO blocks
Alberta cattle
21.aug.08
Calgary Herald
Gina Teel
http://www.canada.com/calgaryherald/news/calgarybusiness/story.html?id=8776e072-8f40-46b9-bd8a-b6581f5389bd
Mexico has banned imports of live cattle from Alberta,
following the discovery of Canada's 14th case of mad cow
disease in the province last week.
Mexico is banning imports of beef and dairy breeding cattle
-- but not stopping the flow of beef into the country -- in
a move Federal Agriculture Minister Gerry Ritz said has no
legitimacy from a scientific perspective.
Canada and Mexico are both considered as controlled-risk
status for BSE, or bovine spongiform encephalopathy, as
recognized by the World Organization for Animal Health, or
OIE.
"They're (Mexico is) very concerned that if they're bringing
in an older breeding animal, that they may be importing BSE;
that's the genesis of this," Ritz said in a telephone
interview Wednesday.
Rob McNabb, general manager of operations at the Canadian
Cattlemen's Association, said Mexico has given written
notice of the ban to the Canadian Food Inspection Agency.
Mexican authorities are describing the move as a temporary
prohibition of live cattle from Alberta, he said, while they
undertake their own risk assessment "and assure themselves
that what Canada's doing to ensure safety is sound."
No further details about a timeline were available.
KANSAS: Rapid
test for pathogens developed by K-State researchers could be
used to detect diseases used by bioterrorists
21.aug.08
K-State Media
Katie Mayes
MANHATTAN -- Dangerous disease often spreads faster than it
takes to diagnose it in the lab. To remedy that, researchers
at Kansas State University have developed a test to bring
that time from days down to hours.
Sanjeev Narayanan, assistant professor, and Greg Peterson,
research microbiologist, both in the department of
diagnostic medicine and pathobiology, use a device called a
DNA spotted microarray to seek out the specific genetic
markers that set one pathogen apart from another and
determine antibiotic resistance.
Traditionally, it takes days and multiple lab workers to
screen a sample of soil, water or feces for just one
pathogen. Additional time is then needed to look for
resistance to antibiotics. The new test developed at
K-State simultaneously looks for multiple diseases and
antibiotic resistance, reducing the time it takes from
sampling to diagnosis to about 24 hours.
"We needed a mass, high through-put system," Narayanan said.
"The longer a serious disease goes undiagnosed, the harder
it is to treat and the further it can spread."
Narayanan and Peterson have analyzed DNA of hundreds of
pathogens and synthesized DNA probes for the specific
genetic sequences that set each pathogen apart. So far they
can detect as many as 557 genes, making it possible for them
to screen for 40 different species of bacteria, 1,200
serotypes of Salmonella, five common serotypes of E. coli,
and resistance to the 45 most common antibiotics used to
treat human and animal illnesses caused by these pathogens.
When a sample is submitted, technicians extract and
fluorescently label total DNA, and run a microarray to check
whether a particular gene is present. Narayanan said the
next step will be to develop a test that indicates how much
of a pathogen is present, or rather how bad an infection is.
Narayanan said that he and Peterson developed the test
because most human and animal infections are caused by a
mixture of pathogens.
Under the current practice, it literally takes days to
isolate and identify each individual pathogen and generate
their antimicrobial resistance profiles. This means
physicians and veterinarians often start antibiotic
treatment before knowing exactly what they're up against.
"This new test will eliminate a lot of the guesswork,"
Narayanan said.
It will tell the doctor how many different kinds of
pathogens are in a sample and which antibiotics won't work,
all in a shorter time frame.
The test's efficiencies also translate into lower cost, he
said.
Should the U.S. ever be attacked with biological weapons,
Narayanan said the new test also will help in quickly
identifying all of the bacterial pathogens used.
"Being able to get such quick results for so many pathogens
at once will become critical in case of bioterrorism," he
said. "Under that scenario, every minute counts in providing
treatment or preventing disease spread."
Also, such pathogens would likely be engineered for
resistance to common drug treatment and the new test would
determine such resistance rapidly, Narayanan said.
The test is currently being used in research labs at
K-State's College of Veterinary Medicine to detect animal
and zoonotic pathogens; zoonotic pathogens can be
transmitted between humans and animals. The test also is
being used to monitor the flow of genetic elements in food
production systems, such as feedlots. However, Narayanan
hopes the test one day will be used to enhance the clinical
diagnosis of animal and human infections.
The quick test was developed out of research work funded by
a $100,000 K-State Targeted Excellence grant.
NEW JERSEY:
Oystermen concerned after DEP restricts shellfishing
20.aug.08
The Star-Ledger
MaryAnn Spoto
http://www.nj.com/news/index.ssf/2008/08/oystermen_concerned_after_dep.html
When the state Department of Environmental Protection closed
down a third of the Delaware Bay to shellfishing this week,
Barney Hollinger immediately laid off the three employees on
his oyster boat.
"Everything stops," said Hollinger, chairman of the Delaware
Bay Shellfish Council. "The restaurants that were buying our
oysters, the oyster dealers, pretty much stopped."
In an industry struggling to survive in New Jersey, the
suspension of shellfish harvesting has nervous oystermen
questioning their future and wondering if reams of
regulations imposed over the years have done any good.
Hollinger said he had collected about a quarter of his
1,208-bushel limit before the ban was ordered Tuesday.
Working out of Port Norris, he and the other oystermen work
from April to early November.
He said roughly 75 oyster boats harvested in the affected
area, and he estimated the industry is losing anywhere from
$20,000 to $50,000 a day. In a business worth between $3
million and $6 million annually, that may not be big bucks,
but it has a ripple effect, he said.
BRITISH
COLUMBIA: Fisheries officials concerned mud snails may
threaten Vancouver Island native fish
20.aug.08
Canadian Press
http://canadianpress.google.com/article/ALeqM5g1BwyZYXZ_Qpg1Os3iXF7yZIwBVw
PORT ALBERNI, B.C. -- New Zealand mud snails have appeared
on Vancouver Island and fisheries officials are concerned
the tiny creatures that breed quickly will threaten the food
supply of native fish.
Graham Gillespie, invertebrate research biologist with
Fisheries and Oceans Canada, said anglers, swimmers and
boaters may spread the invasive species that showed up in
the Somass River Estuary to other lakes and rivers.
"We wouldn't want someone to go home, leave their waders for
a couple of days, then go fishing in another watershed,"
Gillespie said from Nanaimo, B.C.
He urged waders and boaters to clean their gear before
leaving the area, then freeze the attire when they get home
to kill the pests.
The New Zealand natives are spreading rapidly throughout
North America, where they have no natural enemies.
The snails have appeared in the Great Lakes, in Idaho and
near Yellowstone Park, in the San Francisco Bay area, along
with Oregon and Washington.
A graduate student from Oregon first identified Potamopyrgus
antipodarum in the Somass River Estuary in July 2007.
AUSTRALIAN
Quarantine and Inspection Service updates its border testing
of imported seafood
20.aug.08
Food Surveillance News - Winter Edition
Food Standards Australia New Zealand
http://www.foodstandards.gov.au/newsroom/foodsurveillancenewsletter/winter2008.cfm
Background
The Australian Quarantine and Inspection Service (AQIS)
tests imported seafood for the presence of antimicrobial
chemicals at the rate of 5% of consignments to monitor
compliance with the Australia New Zealand Food Standards
Code (the Code). This testing program is in addition to
testing for food classified as “risk” by Food Standards
Australia New Zealand (FSANZ). The rates of inspection of
risk food and for compliance monitoring are prescribed by
the Imported Food Control Act 1992.
AQIS has tested imported prawns for nitrofurans and
chloramphenicol since 2003. In 2005, AQIS introduced testing
for malachite green as part of the routine sampling of
imported aquaculture fish. In the 2006 calendar year,
imported seafood tested for these antimicrobial compounds
showed above 95% compliance with the Code.
Testing imported seafood for the above chemicals was
introduced following information from domestic findings,
including a number of Australian surveys that detected
antimicrobial chemicals, such as:
* A 2005 FSANZ-led national survey of chemical residues in
aquaculture fish which tested for a range of veterinary
residues such as nitrofurans, chloramphenicol,
sulphonamides, tetracyclines, penicillins, macrolides, and
quinolones, and also for polychlorinated biphenyls and a
number of heavy metals. This survey found that residues of
these veterinary chemicals in aquaculture fish were
generally compliant with the Code except for residues of
malachite green and/or its metabolite leuco-malachite green
in some domestically produced finfish and imported seafood.
* A 2005 survey in South Australia which detected low levels
of chloramphenicol in some imported crab meat.
In 2006, there were concerns that other chemicals may be
present in seafood, particularly in farmed seafood, and
testing would need to be broadened to cover other chemicals.
Of particular concern was the possible occurrence of
veterinary compounds that are of critical importance in
human medicine.
To investigate whether new chemicals needed to be added to
the testing program, AQIS conducted a snapshot survey of
antimicrobial and pesticide chemicals in imported seafood.
AQIS has reviewed its antimicrobial screen applied to
imported seafood.
In September 2007, AQIS decided to add, for a trial period
of six months, three additional antimicrobial chemicals
(fluoroquinolones, quinolones and penicillin) to its
existing screen for imported seafood, which tested for
nitrofurans and malachite green. This testing occurs under
the random surveillance program in which it randomly tests
5% of imported seafood.
AQIS introduced the extra three chemicals following its
small survey of chemical residues in imported seafoods,
which it carried out between 2006 and 2007 (see Food
Surveillance News Spring 2007).
The purpose of the 2006/07 survey was to provide a snapshot
of chemical residues in imported seafood to check if the
testing program was up-to-date. It found one or more
antimicrobial chemicals in some imported seafood, prompting
AQIS to test for the additional antimicrobials over the next
six months to gather more information.
After the six months additional testing on imported
seafoods, AQIS reviewed the test data. In those six months,
AQIS has conducted 522 tests, with seven detections of an
antimicrobial chemical (Table 1).
The seafood tested included fish (barramundi, basa, cod,
eel, mackerel, marlin, red emperor, salmon, trout, tuna,
whiting and other species), lobsters, crabs and prawns.
These foods were sourced from Argentina, Chile, China,
Denmark, India, Indonesia, Italy, Japan, Malaysia, Myanmar,
Namibia, Netherlands, New Zealand, Niue, Norway, Papua New
Guinea, Portugal, South Africa, South Korea, Sweden, Taiwan,
Thailand, United States and Vietnam.
Table 1: Summary of failed tests
The Result
After six months of testing under the broadened
antimicrobial screen, there had been no detections for
penicillin or quinolones. As a result, AQIS removed these
chemicals from the antimicrobial screen. It will continue
testing imported seafood products for fluoroquinolones,
nitrofurans and malachite green.
UK:
Northumberland warned of Bluetongue change
20.aug.08
Morpeth Herald
http://www.morpethherald.co.uk/news/Northumberland-warned-of-Bluetongue-change.4411475.jp
Northumberland County Council's Animal Health and Welfare
Team today warned farmers of impending changes which will
restrict their ability to move livestock, especially into
Scotland.
The team has been notified by DEFRA that the Bluetongue
Protection Zone will be extended into Northumberland and
Cumbria shortly, but no earlier than September 1. This will
complete the vaccination roll-out by bringing the whole of
England into the Protection Zone.
Once the Protection Zone has been extended into Cumbria and
Northumberland, unvaccinated animals will no longer be able
to move into Scotland.
Animals can only be moved out of the zone if they are
vaccinated or naturally immune, subject to meeting certain
conditions.
WYOMING: Feds
give rancher more time to consider slaughter
20.aug.08
Casper Star-Tribune
Chris Merrill
http://www.trib.com/articles/2008/08/20/news/breaking/doc48ac671d3bc7e209890370.txt
LANDER -- The federal government has agreed to give a
Daniel-area rancher more time to decide whether he'll
slaughter all of his breeding cattle from his
brucellosis-infected herd, the state veterinarian said
Wednesday.
There are stipulations built into the extension, which will
affect the ultimate slaughter deadline, but it should give
the rancher until late September or early October to
“depopulate” his herd, said State Veterinarian Walt Cook.
If the rancher, whose identity is protected by state law,
fails to slaughter his breeding animals by the new deadline,
the entire state will lose its brucellosis-free market
status for cattle.
COLORADO:
American Human Association signs exclusive agreement with
HS3 Technologies to further farming standards
20.aug.08
American Human Association
DENVER, CO -- The American Humane Association's American
Humane Certified(TM) program, a voluntary, fee-based service
that certifies producers' farm animals are raised humanely,
has signed an exclusive agreement with video surveillance
and security company HS3 Technologies, Inc. to further
ensure that food production in North America meets American
Humane animal welfare standards.
Beta testing will begin this fall in five production and
transportation facilities for swine, chicken (broiler and
layer farms) and cattle (veal and dairy). The selected
producers distribute nationally and internationally, and
represent some of the largest animal protein producers in
the world.
The surveillance systems, which monitor conditions and
events such as temperature, air flow, feeding schedules,
personnel entrances/exits and animal mobility 1) trigger
alarms when abnormalities occur, and 2) can be viewed (with
a password) in real time from any computer with an internet
connection, thus creating facilities that are run more
efficiently with complete transparency.
Under the new agreement, the video monitoring service will
become a standard component of the American Humane Certified
compliance program, incorporating more than 15,000 locations
in North America. Qualified producers who successfully
complete the American Humane assessment are entitled to use
the American Humane Certified logo on their retail
packaging. Consumer preference shows that products labeled
"humanely-raised,” and "cage-free” command a premium price
at the grocery store.
"HS3 is totally committed to assisting and demonstrating to
consumers that American farmers are genuinely concerned
about the welfare of the animals they produce,” says HS3
Technologies CEO Mark Lana. "We want to help show that
American farmers are conscientious.”
For more information about the American Humane Certified
program, visit www.thehumanetouch.org.
LETTER:
Horses deserve better end than slaughterhouse
20.aug.08
USA Today
Michael Markarian, Executive vice president, The Humane
Society of the United States
http://blogs.usatoday.com/oped/2008/08/horses-deserve.html#more
Horse slaughter is not, as commentary writer Mary Zeiss
Stange claimed in her piece "Homeless on the range," a
necessary evil. The idea of a surplus of horses "needing" to
go to slaughter is just wrong. The availability of horse
slaughter and the export of our horses for this purpose have
allowed overbreeding and other irresponsible practices to
proliferate unchecked for far too long (The Forum,
Thursday).
Even as the horse population has increased, the number of
horses going to slaughter has decreased. In 2006, the last
full year when horses were slaughtered in the U.S.,
approximately 100,000 horses — or about 1% of the population
— were sent to slaughter. The existing horse community can
absorb such a relatively small number.
With no U.S. horse slaughter plants, horses are sent to
Mexico and Canada, enduring longer journeys and hideous
deaths. Legislation pending in Congress, the Prevention of
Equine Cruelty Act of 2008, would prevent new plants from
opening and forbid the export of horses for human
consumption.
If horse owners can't care for their animal, they can sell
the horse to another owner, relinquish the horse to a rescue
or sanctuary, or humanely euthanize the horse.
What sadly has always existed is neglect by ill-suited horse
owners. Just as it is illegal to mistreat or starve one's
dog or cat, it is illegal to do so to one's horse. People
who neglect or abandon their horse can — and should — be
prosecuted under the animal-cruelty laws that exist in every
state.
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