USDA says Minn. pigs may have tested positive for swine flu, 1st potential cases in US pigs
By Steve Karnowski, APFriday, October 16, 2009
Minn. pigs may have tested positive for swine flu
MINNEAPOLIS — Preliminary tests show three pigs in Minnesota may have contracted the swine flu virus making them the first potential U.S. cases in swine, agricultural officials said Friday. They stressed the finding does not threaten food safety.
The samples were taken from pigs shown at the Minnesota State Fair between Aug. 26 and Sept. 1 as part of a university research project. Officials expect results next week to confirm whether the pigs were infected with swine flu virus, also known as H1N1.
The pigs did not show signs of sickness and officials said they likely contracted the virus from some of the nearly 1.8 million people who visited the fair.
The Department of Agriculture’s veterinary lab in Ames, Iowa, is conducting tests to confirm the results, Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack said in a statement.
In a conference call with reporters Friday, Minnesota Agriculture Commissioner Gene Hugoson said officials don’t know what happened to the three pigs, but that they probably were sent to slaughter soon after they were shown at the fair, which ended on Labor Day.
“This is not an issue of food safety,” Hugoson said. “Pork products are and continue to be safe to eat.”
Authorities aren’t planning special measures if the tests confirm the Minnesota pigs had the virus. Hugoson said farmers will continue watching herds for flu symptoms, and slaughterhouse inspectors will continue rejecting pigs showing disease symptoms.
Agriculture officials had long expected the virus to reach domestic pigs this year and have guidelines to slow its spread, said Jeff Bender, director of the University of Minnesota’s Center for Animal Health and Food Safety. Herd infections previously were reported in Canada, Australia, Argentina, Ireland, the United Kingdom and Norway. A hog vaccine for the virus is being developed but isn’t yet available.
Jose Diez, a USDA veterinary official on Friday’s call, said killing pigs to stop the spread of the virus has not been considered. He and other officials said swine usually recover quickly from influenza, and generally are sent to slaughter after they’re healthy and ready for market.
While the chance of a pig infecting a person is considered remote, the animals can act as mixing vessels if they happen to catch two different strains at the same time, allowing mutation of a new one. Officials said there’s no evidence that’s happened.
Still, the news was clearly unwelcome for the pork industry, which has worked to distance itself from the swine flu virus.
“At the end of the day this is not a big deal,” said Mike Wegner, a spokesman for the National Pork Board. “There is no reason for anyone to be concerned about the safety of pork, either eating or handling.”
Hugoson said it’s too early to gauge the impact of Friday’s news on the industry, which already was struggling with decreasing exports fueled by virus fears.
Duane Woebbeking, a hog producer outside of Gladbrook, Iowa, said Friday’s news presented a potential “public relations risk” to pork producers.
“I’m more concerned with the public fear,” he said. “How many thousands of people die a year from the flu? Most years nobody thinks about it, but now everyone is up in arms because of this H1N1 thing.”
Minnesota is the country’s No. 3 pork-producing state behind Iowa and North Carolina. Minnesota pork producers had 7.3 million hogs and pigs as of Sept. 1, according to USDA figures, while the national inventory was 66.6 million head. The pork industry contributes nearly $1.5 billion and more than 21,000 jobs to the state’s economy, according to the National Pork Producers Council.
Associated Press writers Henry C. Jackson and Lauran Neergaard in Washington, and Michael J. Crumb in Des Moines, Iowa, contributed to this report.
Tags: Animal Health, Animals, Diseases And Conditions, Food Safety, Infectious Diseases, Iowa, Minneapolis, Minnesota, North America, Products And Services, Public Health, United States
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October 17, 2009: 5:56 pm
I think the most dangerous food is meat as it destroys humanity and leads to wars and destroys all ultimately. Obesity & Magic Pill : I personally recognize that wheat is a far better diet than meat on the ground it normally exits body with ease and rapidity, and we are well aware that our heath depends upon smooth metabolism and blood stream associated with the immune system and how important our daily workout is, as well. I still think the critical conditions mostly come from breach of our immune system, and the food that stays long in the body is more likely to become a source where germs, bacterias, viruses and the like multiply. Disadvantages of meat consumption : 1. The food that stays long in the body looks more likely to become a source where germs, bacterias and the like multiply, which even gives birth to critical conditions involving prostate cancer. 2. The consumption of meat proved lethal as earlier this year, the expansive, long-term release concluded about a third of more than 500,000 Americans aged 50-70 with this behavior tends to wind up with premature fatality caused by cancer, hypertension and more. 3. The in-take of pork raises risks of catching swine flue and its mutation, costing around the initially estimated $2trillion dollars word-wide and endangering recovery, (( Genes included in the new swine flu have been circulating undetected in pigs for at least a decade, according to researchers who have sequenced the genomes of more than 50 samples of the virus. The findings suggest that in the future, pig populations will need to be monitored more closely for emerging influenza viruses, reported a team led by Rebecca Garten of the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention in a report released by the journal Science.)) Still, media downplay this fact out of small thinking to protect meat industry. 4. All but media influenced by meat industry blame calorie for overweight or obesity rather than fat, I still think Fat equals Fat by definition and common sense. 5. Hot dogs are often associated with food-borne illness. Though other food items carry listeria , FDA (Food and Drug Administration) studies have shown a high level of the harmful bacteria on hot dogs, processed meat and ready-to-eat meat products. And consuming hot dogs and other processed meats increases the risk of cancer The class-action consumer fraud lawsuit underway in New Jersey is based on a report from the American Institute for Cancer Research. Its findings included this fact: Consuming one 50-gram serving of processed meat (about the amount in one hot dog) every day increases the risk of colorectal cancer, on average, by 21 percent. Nitrites, used to keep hot dogs fresh, are the main culprit, according to the suit. While nitrites are commonly found in many green vegetables, especially spinach, celery and green lettuce, the consumption of vegetables appears to be effective in reducing the risk of cancer. Because these vegetables also contain Vitamin C and D, which serve to inhibit the formation of carcinogenic compounds, they actually reduce your cancer risk. 6. Two thirds of Americans are overweight or obese, which branch into so many different kinds of diseases, excess body fat increases risk for numerous cancers, costing up to $147 billion a year. 7. America needs to put focus on a sustainable energy industry to become a lead exporter, in place of a fast food business where the overall loss outstrips gain more than known, from my stance. Provided the average temperature is getting higher, accordingly all forms of germs, bacterias, viruses, and influenza etc are more likely to multiply. Some skeptics say the warning against hazards of climate change is overstated, but judging from more frequent and widespread outbreaks of e. coli, salmonella, and bird, swine flu cases endangering human lives and economic recovery seriously, some prompt measures need to be taken, I guess. Also, Breathing toxic chemicals in the outdoor air exposes all Americans to a lifetime cancer risk at least 10 times greater than the level considered acceptable under federal law, shows new data released by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. Thank You ! |
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