Swine Manure Applicators Invited to Participate in PED Survey

By Bruce Cochrane

The Manitoba Livestock Manure Management Initiative is gathering input from swine manure applicators to learn what they're doing to prevent the spread of PED.

The Manitoba Livestock Manure Management Initiative in collaboration with the University of Wisconsin Madison has launched a survey of swine manure applicators aimed at gathering information on how they are dealing with Porcine Epidemic Diarrhea.
MLMMI executive director John Carney says the survey targets for hire commercial manure applicators.

John Carney-John Carney:
A lot of the survey is focussed on changes that manure applicators have made in their practices or that customers have asked them to make to manage and prevent the spread of the PED virus.
It could be everything from what new equipment have they purchased, what new procedures have they got, what additional training has been provided to staff, what changing communications has happened between the manure applicator and the customer and then perhaps even more importantly what additional research or information would manure applicators like to have that would help them in managing this disease.

In my experience people want to do the right thing for their customers and want to deliver what their customers expect and require.

But, with that said, sometimes the requirement can be very difficult or challenging to deliver and so what we really wanted to understand is where are manure applicators finding the difficulties, the challenges in meeting these expectations and equally important, where are they finding success and then how can we share those successes to help protect the livelihood of all producers and the industry.

Carney says the survey was launched this past weekend and will be open for about one month.

For more information or to link to the survey visit the MLMMI web site at manure.mb.ca.

Source: Farmscape