From The Editor: June 2006

It’s been said that hindsight is twenty-twenty.  Most of us can think
back to times in our lives where we wish we had chosen a different
path.

It’s been said that hindsight is twenty-twenty.  Most of us can think back to times in our lives where we wish we had chosen a different path.

I’ve been thinking about hindsight quite often lately.  Not because I’m dwelling on my own mistakes or ‘if onlys’; life is too short for that.  I’ve been thinking about how hindsight can be applied to the poultry and other livestock industries. 

When it comes to biosecurity, I think that hindsight is indeed twenty-twenty.  Why does it take an event, catastrophic or not, to initiate change, or promote discussion?

It seems that biosecurity has been a hot topic only in recent years, accelerated by the threat of avian influenza.  But biosecurity really isn’t a new idea.

About a month ago I was looking through the archives of Canadian Poultry, digging out material for a future article. An issue from 1984 caught my eye.  On the cover was ‘Avian Influenza Prevention Checklist.’ I flipped the pages and read the article.  Boy was I surprised to find that what was written on that page is very similar what is being preached today, and featured in this magazine, as well as poultry magazines and web sites around the world.

I wasn’t surprised that members of the industry realized the importance of biosecurity more than 20 years ago.  What surprised me was that until the avian influenza outbreak in 2004, biosecurity was not being fully implemented, and in some cases still isn’t.  

It comes back to hindsight.  To choose the right path, we need the right tools to make an informed decision. We also need experience.  That’s why it’s easy for a parent to tell a teenager or young adult that they will regret or be hindered by certain decisions.  The parent knows this because they most likely went through it themselves, only to realize years later how foolish these decisions were, or what they should have done differently.

Sure, we know more now than we did 22 years ago with respect to how disease is spread, and all of the paths disease can take to enter the barn. But science isn’t everything.  Inexperience, politics and ignorance can work against us.  

At the first Ontario Livestock and Poultry Council conference, held in April, the poultry industry stood out as a leader when it comes to being prepared and utilizing biosecurity on-farm. Other livestock industries need to run at a full sprint to catch up. 

The conference highlighted a foreign animal disease simulation exercise held in late 2005 with the dairy and veal sectors.  The purpose of the exercise was to test Emergency Response Plans, similar to the exercise conducted with the poultry industry by the Poultry Industry Council in 2004.

Communication, movement of animals, people, and product was tested and evaluated.  A disease with the same properties as Foot and Mouth Disease  – called Lipsandtoesis for the purpose of the exercise – was suspect on several dairy and veal farms in a particular county. 

Members of these two industries received a hard slap in the face.  But, as in the poultry simulation, some valuable lessons were learned.

The producers owning the index farms were asked to keep a log of all visits, as well track their own movements on and off the farm for six weeks prior to the simulation. 

The producer of the index dairy farm was quite surprised by the number of visits his farm received, and by his own movements as well. What struck him the most was that in the event of a real outbreak, he would not have had such information readily available.

The veal producer said that before the simulation, she and her family were not ready for a disaster, but are more so now.  She felt that when compared to the poultry industry, the cattle industry has inadequate biosecurity.

Dairy Farmers of Ontario and Ontario Veal Association representatives echoed what the poultry industry has been saying for some time; that better communication is needed within their own industries, as well as with the government agencies that are involved in disease outbreaks.

Progress is being made. Just attempting an exercise like this is such an invaluable learning tool for everyone involved, and builds a solid foundation of knowledge. 

The benefit of looking back and realizing your mistakes is developing the ability to look forward, and prevent the same mistakes from happening again.  This will serve all livestock industries when a real outbreak occurs.