Prevalence and relatedness of Salmoenlla spp in a Canadian abattori

The prevalence of Salmonella contamination was assessed at five points in a Canadian pork slaughter plant. In the cooler only 0.5% (2/429) carcasses were positive, even though Salmonella were detected in 51.3% of all cecal samples and in the cecum of at least one pig in 91.5% (43/47) lots tested. Hogs held overnight in lairage were significantly more likely to have positive cecal samples. Salmonella was isolated at least once from the truck, holding pen or cecum of hogs from all 31 producers

Prevalence and relatedness of Salmoenlla spp in a Canadian abattori

The prevalence of Salmonella contamination was assessed at five points in a Canadian pork slaughter plant. In the cooler only 0.5% (2/429) carcasses were positive, even though Salmonella were detected in 51.3% of all cecal samples and in the cecum of at least one pig in 91.5% (43/47) lots tested. Hogs held overnight in lairage were significantly more likely to have positive cecal samples. Salmonella was isolated at least once from the truck, holding pen or cecum of hogs from all 31 producers.</p

Salmonella spp. infections in finishing swine in Alberta

The main objective was to estimate the bacteriological farm prevalence of Salmonella infections on 89 finishing farms in Alberta. Furthermore, the pattern of almonella farm infections over time, distribution within the farm environment and the serotype distribution were investigated. On a farm level, at least one Salmonella positive fecal sample was detected from 51.68% of participating farms. Finishing farms with no positive Salmonella samples on one sampling occasion might have one or more positive samples on other occasions. Classifying a farm based on a single sampling may not be adequate to understand the Salmonella farm status. More than 95% of Salmonella isolates belonged to the serogroups B, C I or D I, while the most frequent serotypes were S. derby, S. infantis and S. typhimurium. A good correlation between serology based on the mix- ELISA and culture based on pen fecal pools was observed on a farm level. High recovery rates from environmental samples suggest that an environment contaminated with Salmonella may contribute to the persistence of Salmonella within a farm.</p

An investigation into human pandemic influenza virus (H1N1) 2009 on an Alberta swine farm

On May 2, 2009 the Canadian Food Inspection Agency notified the World Organization for Animal Health that an emerging novel influenza A virus (pandemic H1N1 2009) had been confirmed on a swine farm in Alberta. Over a 4-week period pigs in this farrow-to-finish operation were clinically affected by respiratory disease consistent with an influenza A virus infection and the presence of active viral infection was confirmed in all production areas by real-time polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR). Despite clinical recovery of animals, there was reluctance by purchasers to receive animals from this operation due to concerns about the effect on both domestic and international markets. The owner decided to depopulate the entire herd due to impending welfare issues associated with overcrowding and economic concerns resulting from the inability to market these animals. Carcasses were rendered or composted and did not enter the human food or animal feed chain. The source of virus in this herd was determined to be an infected human. Zoonotic transmission to 2 individuals responding to the outbreak was suspected and recommendations to prevent occupational exposure are discussed