41 research outputs found
The Costs of Biosecurity at the Farm Level: the Case of Finnish Broiler
In the European Union, the animal health and food safety strategy includes managing biosecurity along the entire production chain. Farm-level biosecurity provides the foundation for this. However, the farm-level costs of preventive biosecurity have rarely been assessed. Yet many risk management practices are in place constantly regardless of whether there is a disease outbreak or not. We contribute towards filling this information gap by studying the costs incurred in preventive biosecurity by the Finnish poultry farms. In a preliminary analysis, we find that the cost of biosecurity is some 3.55 cents per bird for broiler producers and 75.7 cents per bird for hatching egg producers. The results indicate that work-time devoted to biosecurity represents some 8% of total work time on broiler farms and about 5% on breeder farms.Biosecurity, on-farm costs, poultry, Livestock Production/Industries,
Pathogenic Yersinia and Listeria monocytogenes in organic pork production
The goal of this study is to determine the prevalence of pathogenic Yersinia and Listeria monocytogenes in organic pork production and assess risks in different steps of the pork production chain
The Costs of Biosecurity at the Farm Level: the Case of Finnish Broiler
In the European Union, the animal health
and food safety strategy includes managing biosecurity
along the entire production chain. Farm-level
biosecurity provides the foundation for this. However,
the farm-level costs of preventive biosecurity have rarely
been assessed. Yet many risk management practices are
in place constantly regardless of whether there is a
disease outbreak or not. We contribute towards filling
this information gap by studying the costs incurred in
preventive biosecurity by the Finnish poultry farms. In a
preliminary analysis, we find that the cost of biosecurity
is some 3.55 cents per bird for broiler producers and
75.7 cents per bird for hatching egg producers. The
results indicate that work-time devoted to biosecurity
represents some 8% of total work time on broiler farms
and about 5% on breeder farms
2019 IEEE Nuclear Science Symposium and Medical Imaging Conference (NSS/MIC)
Dynamic Positron Emission Tomography (PET) is a valuable method in
Myocardial Perfusion Imaging (MPI) allowing quantification of blood flow
in the myocardial tissue. A reference test object simulating myocardial
blood flow is needed. A newly developed PET phantom enables flow
quantification with a known reference. However, the repetability of the
flow phantom needs to be confirmed. The aim of this study was to confirm
that no significant variability exists between image-derived or
reference flow between subsequent measurements. Finally, we confirmed
repeatability of the flow values derived by kinetic modelling from PET
images of the phantom. Five repeated measurements with fixed acquisition
and reconstruction protocol were performed. PET images were analysed
with a software provided by the phantom vendor to derive the
time-activity curves for modelling of flow values. The image-derived
flow rates varied with SD of 0.89 mL/min and 0.86 mL/min between
subsequent measurements. Error between image-derived and reference flow
was less than 5.5 % on average within all subsequent repeats.
Fluctuations between the subsequent measurements are considered to arise
from the dose administration and water flow inside the phantom. In
conclusion, the newly developed PET flow phantom shows high
repeatability and is a reliable platform for quality control and
validation studies in MPI in PET.</p
Observed Classroom Quality Profiles of Kindergarten Classrooms in Finland
Research Findings: The aim of the present study was to examine classroom quality profiles of kindergarten classrooms using a person-centered approach and to analyze these patterns in regard to teacher and classroom characteristics. Observations of the domains of Emotional Support, Classroom Organization, and Instructional Support were conducted in 49 Finnish kindergarten classrooms utilizing the Classroom Assessment Scoring System (R. C. Pianta, K. M. LaParo, & B. K. Hamre, 2008
). In addition, questionnaire data on classroom and teacher characteristics, as well as Early Childhood Classroom Observation Measure (D. Stipek & P. Byler, 2004
) observational ratings, were used in the analyses. Latent profiling analysis was utilized to identify different profiles of classroom quality. Four latent profiles of classroom quality were identified that differed from one another most clearly in the domain of Emotional Support. Profile 1 represented a generally high level and Profile 4 a generally low level of classroom quality compared to the other profiles, whereas the medium-quality Profiles 2 and 3 showed varying levels of support in the assessed dimensions of quality. Only a few differences emerged among the profiles in classroom and teacher characteristics: The teachers in Profile 4 provided the least literacy instruction and had the least amount of work experience of all of the teachers. The findings using the Early Childhood Classroom Observation Measure indicated that child-centered practices were predominant among the profiles of higher classroom quality. Practice or Policy: The results of this study can be used to recognize kindergarten teachers' professional strengths and weaknesses and to support teachers' professional development with the aid of pedagogical interventions.peerReviewe