The National Pork Board has been working with AASV, NPPC, SHIC and USDA to develop a response plan for emerging swine diseases. A draft of this plan currently in development, entitled the Emerging Swine Production Disease Plan, includes a recommendation to institute an advisory group called the Swine Disease Response Council (SDRC) composed of representatives including producers, veterinarians, state and federal government and researchers.
The SDRC is fashioned along the lines of the Pseudorabies Control Board which was instrumental during the pseudorabies eradication program to evaluate issues and offer recommendations to USDA and state animal health officials to promote the eradication effort. Drs. Matt Ackerman and Tim Snider represent AASV on the SDRC and Dr Harry Snelson provides AASV staff support.
The purpose of the SDRC is to offer recommendations on how the industry and animal health officials should respond to emerging diseases. While the council has no legal authority and its recommendations are not binding, it is a collaborative group of stakeholders with the goal of rapidly bringing all interested parties together to evaluate an emerging situation and develop a strategy for addressing the outbreak. The SDRC held its inaugural meeting on June 21. The objective of the meeting was to increase members’ knowledge of the ESPD Plan and to apply the knowledge using historical emerging disease outbreaks as test cases for the plan.
More information will be forthcoming as the disease plan is finalized and the council moves forward.