National Milk Producers Federation

Letter to the U.S. Department of Homeland Security - August 25, 2008

NMPF submitted a letter to the U.S Department of Homeland Security (DHS) to point out the dangers in a DHS proposal to close the Plum Island Animal Disease Center (PIADC) and potentially move its biological research laboratory to a new location on the U.S. mainland. The full letter is available here.

The Draft Environmental Impact Statement can be viewed online at the DHS NBAF website.

Information Sheet

For more information on Foot and Mouth disease, read the dairy fact sheet put together by NMPF, the International Dairy Foods Associaton, Dairy Management Inc., and the U.S. Dairy Export Council.

Top Ten Steps Dairy Producers Can Take Against FMD and BSE

It is of the utmost importance that every dairy farmer institute a biosecurity plan. Biosecurity is managing the herd to prevent the introduction and spread of infectious diseases. The following is a list of NMPF’s Top Ten List to protect livestock from infectious diseases:

(1) Maintaining a healthy herd with proper biosecurity protections. The best biosecurity protection is a healthy, closed herd.

(2) Do not purchase any animals from any foreign country or source where cattle may have been exposed to a foreign animal disease such as FMD. Likewise, do not purchase replacement animals from domestic sources without determining the herd health status, particularly with regard to emerging cattle diseases such as Johne's Disease.

(3) Do not allow any visitors on the farm if they have been outside the continental United States in the past two weeks, unless you can verify that they have not been in close contact with any cloven-footed animal for the past five days.

(4) All visitors should be wearing clean clothing (preferably dry cleaned) or disposable outer coveralls (Cloth or Tyvex) and be required to wear disposable plastic footwear covering, or thoroughly wash boots and disinfect with an EPA-approved disinfectant such as Virkon-S or Oxonia Active/Oxycept 333. Household vinegar or acetic acid at 4%-7% in the absence of organic matter will effectively inactivate the FMD virus.

(5) Implement a quarantine program for all newly purchased animals, before introducing or exposing them to any animals in the herd. Develop an appropriate quarantine plan in consultation with your vet.

(6) Clean, disinfect and maintain all livestock treatment and handling equipment in a sanitary condition at all times. Milking, vet, animal identification and foot trimming equipment should be cleaned and disinfected or sanitized properly between use on individual animals, groups of animals and farms, as dictated by best management practices.

(7) Immediately report to your vet or State Vet any signs of blistering on the nose and mouth of any animal, including excessive salivation. Clinical signs of Vesicular Stomatitis or FMD may also be indicated by detachment of the epithelial surface of the tongue, ruptured blisters on the gum or at the end of the cow's teat. Quick reporting is absolutely essential, because these two diseases cannot be differentiated except through laboratory tests.

(8) Restrict unauthorized visitors and vehicles from entering any animal production related area. Off-facility traffic should be confined away from the herd and animal production areas to avoid spread of disease from other farms or livestock facilities. All visitors should sign in and out and be escorted while visiting the operation.

(9) Implement precautions to assure compliance with the FDA Ruminant Feed Ban. Be sure all purchased feed mixes or supplements do not contain prohibited mammalian protein such as meat and bone meal. If you are uncertain regarding a feed source, require a supplier letter certifying compliance with all FDA Feed Ban regulations. If you are mixing feed on the farm for other species such as poultry or swine, dedicate a seperate mixer and feed handling equipment for bovine use only. Avoid all possibilities of any cross-contamination from unapproved ruminant protein sources. Keep all invoices of purchased feed for a minimum of three years in the event there is a need to track back illegal sources of feed ingredients.

(10) Implement an active fly, rodent and bird control program. Avoid any feed bunk exposure to wildlife, if at all possible. Prevent urine and feces excrements from dogs and cats from contaminating feed and feed bunks. These vectors are well-documented carriers of diseases that can infect cattle.

International Travelers

In response to the increasing number of foot-and-mouth disease (FMD) outbreaks worldwide, travelers to the United States from infected regions need to take steps to help prevent the accidental introduction of the disease into this country.

FMD is not considered a human health risk but humans can carry the virus on their clothing, shoes, body (particularly the throat and nasal passages), and personal items. The disease is extremely contagious and spreads easily among cloven-hoofed animals such as cattle, sheep, pigs, goats and deer. Introduction of FMD into this country would be disastrous to the American livestock industry andwildlife community. For this reason all visits to farms or other livestock facilties in FMD infected areas and all food items and other materials of plant or animal origin in the traveler's possession must be reported on the U.S. Customs Declaration Form upon entering the country.

The following preventive measures should be taken by travelers to the United States from FMD infected countries:

1. Avoid farms, sale barns, stockyards, animal laboratories, packing houses, zoos, fairs or other animal facilities for 5 days prior to travel.

2. Before travel to the United States, launder or dry clean all clothing and outerwear. All dirt and soil should be removed from shoes by thorough cleaning prior to wiping with cloth dampened with a bleach solution. (5 tablespoons of household bleach in 1 gallon of water). Luggage and personal items (including watches, cameras, laptops, CD players and cell phones), if soiled, should be wiped with a cloth dampened with a bleach solution.

3. Avoid contact with livestock or wildlife for 5 days after arrival in the United States. Extra precautionary measures should be taken by people traveling from farms in infected locales to visit or work on farms in the United States. It is advisable that employers or sponsors provide arriving travelers with a clean set of clothing that can be worn after the visitor showers and shampoos thoroughly. Visitor's traveling clothes should be laundered or dry cleaned immediately. Off-farm activities should be scheduled for the visitor's first 5 days in-country and contact with livestock or wildlife should be strictly avoided.

Reminder to Livestock Owners

The U.S. Department of Agriculture encourages livestock owners and private veterinary practitioners to report any unusual animal health symptoms to their local agricultural officials. USDA continues to safeguard American agriculture from foreign animal diseases like foot-and-mouth disease (FMD). As part of this effort, the Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS) has certified more than 450 foreign animal disease diagnosticians located throughout the United States to investigate every instance of potential foreign animal diseases.

FMD is a severe, highly communicable viral disease of cattle and swine. It also affects sheep, goats, deer, and other cloven-hoofed ruminants. Symptoms of FMD include blisters around the mouth or on the feet, reduced appetite, and lameness. FMD can be confused with several other, but less harmful diseases such as vesicular stomatitis or swine vesicular disease.

When an investigation is conducted, the location is placed under quarantine until laboratory tests confirm whether or not the condition is FMD. No such investigation has turned up FMD in the United States since 1929.