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Better Pork
December 2016
BEYOND
THE
BARN
If your travel plans include stand-
ing around in sub-zero tempera-
tures talking pork, your spouse may
decide to sit this one out – but you’ll
still have plenty of company. While
drawing 600 people to the Canadian
Rockies in January is no small feat,
organizers of the 46th
Banff Pork
Seminar
(BPS) know what it takes.
Considered a key industry event in
North America, BPS runs Jan. 10-12,
2017 at the Banff Springs Hotel.
The theme “innovative and sus-
tainable solutions for an evolving
industry” is evident in several presen-
tations, including “Countering public
misperceptions of agriculture” by Dr.
Joe Schwarcz
of
McGill University
.
“One of the greatest misconceptions
today surrounds the herbicide glypho-
sate,” said Schwarcz.
“Of course glyphosate is toxic, it’s
supposed to be; after all, it’s designed
to kill weeds. The problem is that
people panic when they hear it can
cause cancer. They don’t understand
that a dose which is toxic in some
laboratory study of animals can be
inconsequential for humans.”
That panic hurts crop industries.
But it also impacts pork producers as
consumers worry that, by eating pork,
they will consume the toxins pigs ingest
with their feed.
Education is key to addressing
misinformation, says Schwarcz.
“Just as we teach kids to read and
write, we must make them scien-
tifically literate. To feed 10 billion
people by 2050, we need decisions
based on sound science rather than
hearsay and emotions.”
BP
BanffPorkSeminar
movesmountains to
driveattendance
UnderstandingPEDVdetectionmethods
Holidaygifts tomakeyou squealwith joy
Nowadays, there is a bacon-themed
version of just about anything. If
you’re looking to complete your
holiday shopping, check out this se-
lection of bacon-inspired gifts. This
list does not indicate endorsement.
For the chef:
BACON 24/SEVEN
:
recipes for curing, smoking and eat-
ing
by
Theresa Gilliam
.
This cookbook covers all things
bacon. From breakfast to dessert,
this book is sure to bring out the
pork connoisseur.
For the bartender:
Bakon Vodka from
Black Rock Spirits
.
If you’ve ever wondered what a
bacon-flavoured drink would taste
like, wonder no more. Bakon, a
bacon-flavoured vodka, is available
by special order from the LCBO.
Bakon is a good choice when mak-
ing a Caesar, according to the com-
pany website.
For the board game fanatic:
Bacon-opoly
from
Late for the Sky
.
This spinoff from the classic
Monopoly board game is sure to
bring the family together for a
bacon-filled game night. Collect
money when you pass “Sizzle” and
be careful not to land on “Burnt.”
The year-round bacon lover:
Bacon
Freak’s
bacon of the month club.
Nothing quite says happy holi-
days like bacon mail. Sign up for
the bacon of the month club, where
every month the recipient is mailed
a package of bacon hand-rubbed
with unique flavours.
Any of these gifts are sure to make
the bacon lover in your life squeal
with delight.
BP
Aumsama/Creative RF/Getty Images photo
Iowa State University
researchers
conducted a study to examine shed-
ding patterns in growing gilts ex-
posed to Porcine Epidemic Diarrhea
Virus (PEDV). The main goal was
to evaluate multiple sample types to
find the best option for the detection
of PEDV.
Researchers collected data from a
gilt production site that was exposed
to PEDV when the pigs were 13
weeks of age. The scientists used
three methods of collection: rectal
swabs, oral fluid samples and pen
fecal samples. Of the three methods,
oral fluids had the highest propor-
tion of positive samples for the
longest amount of time (69 days),
followed by pen fecal samples (55
days) and rectal swabs (41 days).
“Overall, we found that detec-
tion varies among sample types, and
producers and veterinarians can
choose which sample type works
best for their system,” said
Jordan
Bjustrom-Kraft,
a research assistant
involved with the study.
PEDV causes the highest mortal-
ity rates in suckling pigs, so under-
standing shedding patterns within
the breeding herd is important in
order to keep a healthy and stable
supply of pork.
The research was published in
June in
BMC Veterinary Research
.
BP
Björn Alberts/Creative RF/Getty Images photo
AlexPro9500/Creative RF/Getty Images photo