What is agricultural biosecurity?
Biosecurity refers to protecting the health of livestock by preventing the
transmission of disease. Any disease that could jeopardize the health of these
animals represents a threat to the economic viability of the farm and the
welfare of the herd. Taking common sense precautions to prevent disease from
coming on to your farm is the best investment you can make.
Infectious diseases are caused by a large number of agents. These range in size
from things that we can see, like bot eggs on the legs of a horse, to
submicroscopic particles, like viruses. We cannot see most infectious agents,
so we cannot tell if an article is contaminated by looking at it. However, we
must assume that any article that is dirty is contaminated.
Infectious diseases can be spread a number of ways. Some are spread by direct
contact between animals, others can be spread by indirect contact, such as by a
contaminated water bowl. Still others are spread by the wind, through insect
bites, on people’s contaminated clothing, in feed or water, or through contact
with wildlife, including vermin. Just as there are many types of infectious
agents, some are easier to destroy than others. Many will survive well in
dirty, damp, dark and cool conditions. Most are eliminated in clean, dry, warm
environments. (Source: Canadian Food Inspection
Agency)
We hope you find the information provided on this site useful and informative.
If you have any questions, comments or suggestions, please contact us at
info@agbiosecurity.ca or telephone 1-888-767 9488 ext 211.
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