Coordinated Response Credited with Eliminating PED from Manitoba

The Director of Swine Health with Manitoba Pork credits a coordinated response from all pork sectors stakeholders for the elimination of PED from the province. Porcine Epidemic Diarrhea affects pigs at all stages of development but it is particularly devastating to piglets from seven to ten days of age, resulting in mortality rates of over 95 percent.

The latest major outbreak in Manitoba began in October 2021 and peaked in January of 2022 resulting in 129 farms infected, predominantly in the high-risk southeastern region.Jenelle Hamblin, the Director of Swine Health with Manitoba Pork, says Manitoba Agriculture and Manitoba Pork led the response and the entire sector was involved.

Quote-Jenelle Hamblin-Manitoba Pork:

From the overall disease response, I would suggest it was quite successful.We managed to eliminate the disease fully and the 2021-2022 outbreak was declared over in late 2023, eliminating all cases of PED on farm in Manitoba.To me that's a great measure of success.

Currently I'm very happy to say we have no active cases of PED on farm in Manitoba.However, I do say that knowing that producers and industry people across the board are on high alert coming into the spring of 2024.Many are working hard on preparations for the potential of new cases of PED coming in this spring and focusing a lot on the prevention of PED, especially in that high-risk area where we have seen infections begin in the past.

As well, coming out of this response in particular was the formation of the Future of PED Working Group.That brought together stakeholders from across the sector to discuss PED management moving forward.This group primarily led the development and the creation of the Manitoba PED elimination plan, which is the plan that we are now looking at utilizing for managing PED, moving forward in the province.

Hamblin says the take home message to producers is to be alert and heighten biosecurity, especially heading into the spring manure application season.