BURLINGTON, Vt. There has never been a time more critical to farm biosecurity than the COVID-19 pandemic, which threatens to cripple operations by impacting large numbers of workers.

A new Healthy Farms, Healthy Agriculture website was intended to help farmers and ranchers learn about problems that affect animals such as African swine flu. But its launch, in early January, almost eerily coincided with the global spread of coronavirus, which has infected more than 1 million people in the U.S. alone.

In user-friendly detail, the website is a one-stop shop and hub for biosecurity resources that tells farms how to prepare, detect and respond to disease, and how to implement a plan for dealing with such crises.

Drawing on numerous sources, the sites content was developed by research associate professor Julie M. Smith, DVM, of the University of Vermonts Department of Animal and Veterinary Sciences; and designed by Joanna Cummings, of UVM Extension.

The biggest challenge is developing the recognition that biosecurity matters, Smith said. Its very hard for farmers to see themselves as needing to convey to people coming on the farm that they could be a risk.

For example, a farmer might be reluctant to remind a visiting veterinarian to wear clean booties, or deal with healthy animals first before helping sick ones, instead of vice versa. Likewise, workers with a variety of tasks should tackle those in clean areas before going to the cow barn to move manure.

Some of these steps are easy and dont cost much, but it takes mindfulness, Smith said. Unfortunately, its not until youve experienced the disaster that you want somebody to tell you what to do. Then it can be too late.

Getting people to close the proverbial barn door before the horse leaves is another big challenge, because its extremely difficult for overworked farm owners and managers to take time out of busy work schedules to develop effective biosecurity plans.

But the website, under the Create a Plan heading, tells how to build, save and continually improve upon a plan by doing it in steps, which eliminates the daunting task of a long, drawn-out project.

Looking beyond COVID-19, Smith believes the crisis might have a couple of silver linings for agriculture. First, the pandemic clearly shows the damage a new disease can cause and the need to be proactive. So when coronavirus subsides, farms without good biosecurity plans will hopefully adopt one.

Equally, if not more important, the population at large will have a better understanding of the hardships agriculture goes through when an animal-related disease such as African swine flu or Avian influenza strikes a farm. Having been forced to stay at home, practice social distancing and intensify personal hygiene, people might empathize with farmers instead of complaining about the increased cost of pork or eggs, Smith said.

The Healthy Farms, Healthy Agriculture website is one part of a much larger, five-year biosecurity research project funded by a $7.4 million USDA grant, involving a half-dozen universities across the country. The projects main focus is gaining a better understanding of human behavior and biosecurity, to see what influences, from economic impact to improved communications, would make farmers take the issue more seriously and adopt plans of their own.

When were talking about biosecurity I like to think about layers of an onion because theres a lot of different practices that need to be part of this constellation of biosecurity, Smith said. Its having all those layers together that actually protect the health of the farm system.

Its really important to think about what are the things that are happening every day that could pose a risk to the farm, she said. You need to take steps to prevent the introduction of disease.

The website identifies potential disease sources such as other livestock, visitors and wildlife; vulnerable farm areas such as maternity pens, facilities for newborns and feed storage sites; and animals that are most susceptible such as baby calves, young stock and animals that have just given birth.

One of the sites most important messages is that biosecurity is a team effort involving anyone connected to the farm including owners, employees, veterinarians, Extension agents, milk and feed haulers, service providers and other visitors.

They all have the potential to either bring or take away infectious agents or pests that could harm your animals, or animals on other farms, the website says. Think of them as members of a biosecurity community with their own responsibilities to ensure that farm animals are protected.

And now more than ever, farm workers, too.

To view the website, visit healthyagriculture.org

For additional information, visit agbiosecurityproject.org

Link:
New Website Promotes Biosecurity on Farms | Northern Region - Lancaster Farming