The spread of viral disease has been at the forefront of animal and human health for the past few years. Avian Influenza (AI), Porcine Reproductive & Respiratory Syndrome (PRRS), Porcine epidemic diarrhea virus (PEDv), and other highly contagious pathogens are all a threat to animal agriculture. Highly Pathogenic AI viruses cause severe, systemic disease with high mortality rates in chickens and turkeys; mortality rates can be as high as 100% in a few days. PEDv causes gastro intestinal symptoms including severe diarrhea and vomiting and has a 50-100% mortality rate in piglets. An often-ov ..read more

The 2024 International Production & Processing Expo (IPPE) had the largest trade show floor ever with 621,350 square feet of exhibit space and 1,427 exhibitors.  This year, IPPE has more than 31,000 poultry and egg, meat, and animal food industry attendees representing 130+ countries. Sponsored by the U.S. Poultry & Egg Association, American Feed Industry Association and the Meat Institute, IPPE is the world’s largest annual poultry and egg, meat and animal food industry event of its kind. “The 2024 IPPE is our largest, most comprehensive event to date. We are thrilled with the ex ..read more

2023 A Year in Review   2023 was a year for growth and new developments. We saw record attendance return to the industries biggest tradeshows. We released a slew of innovative new products, and we lost one of the industries most notable inventors, Fred Steudler. While IPPE’s attendance might have waned a bit, the rebranding of the Midwest Poultry Show to PEAK might have been just the thing to reinvigorate the show and the industry in the region. The World Pork Expo was notable as always for the swine industry, despite the hog sector’s current status. Our newest products include the Clearf ..read more

  Biosecurity Practices That Everyone Should Follow Control of human traffic: Restrict visitors to essential personnel only. Ideally, from a biosecurity standpoint, there would be no visitors at all. All people moving onto and within the site should be approved and records kept,  including all contractors, service people, maintenance personnel, site visitors, friends, and neighbors. Have a clear procedure in place for all entering the barn, provide dedicated clean within-barn coveralls and footwear for both staff and visitors. Clean hands by washing or with sanitizer. Some may requ ..read more

The 2022 Avian Influenza pandemic has run rampant for more than a year now. It has killed more than 58 million birds to date. It has affected egg and meat prices dramatically and it is starting to feel like there is no end in sight. The current means of control focus on higher impact biosecurity measures such as decreasing farm traffic, implementing vehicle washing, using foot baths and a variety of other forms of disinfection. One thing that isn’t being done: vaccination. Vaccination against H5N1 could possibly halt symp toms and transmission, but there are still some concerns about their use ..read more

From the late 1980s onward, Mark’s father and brothers started a legacy of family farming, and they haven’t given it up yet. Somewhere in the windy plains of Iowa, Mark and his three brothers own and operate a menagerie of swine barns that they have collected over the years. Around ten houses in total are operational at any given time, all growing for Smithfield and housing finishing hogs. Mark has been in the industry so long that he has had a front row seat to the innovations of the industry. He started out using the Ventium controllers and was so well versed in their function that he was th ..read more

Water is an important nutrient that directly affects a flock’s health and wellbeing. Birds must have adequate access to clean water for optimal consumption. It’s important to understand the difference between water usage and water consumption. Water usage is what goes through the water meter. It measures the water used for cooling systems, as well as the watering systems, but it doesn’t measure the exact amount consumed by the birds. Water consumption is what goes through the birds and is used for digestion and growth. Because it is impossible to know how much the birds are actually consuming ..read more

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Poultry Bedding Bedding acts like a sponge and absorbs moisture from fecal waste, while providing a dry, comfortable medium for birds to scratch and rest upon. It should be quick-drying, soft, compressible, and absorbent as it provides a cushion for the breast muscle and feet. It should be lightweight and have medium particle size. Birds will also consume some litter so it should be free of contaminants that could be harmful when absorbed into the edible tissues of the chicken. Litter should also have low thermal conductivity to retain warmth and act as insulation, which is important during co ..read more

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