Trichinosis

Trichinosis is a disease that is caused by small threadlike worms called trichinae. I It is not catching. People get trichinosis when they eat raw or underdone pork that contains trichinae. Few of the millions of hogs killed each year for food have living trichinae in their muscles, but, since there are some, you should never eat pork that is not properly cooked. Cooking pork throughout kills the worms

Survey among Belgian pig producers about the introduction of group housing systems for gestating sows

There is a global move from individual to group housing of gestating sows. In the European Union, individual gestating stalls will be banned by 2013. Just like in other industrialized regions, these stalls have been the standard housing system for intensively kept sows from the 1960s onward in the Flemish region of Belgium. Because the socioeconomic consequences for the pig industry may be far-reaching and because farmer attitude may influence the realization of the hoped-for improvement in animal welfare in practice, we conducted a survey from 2003 until 2009 among representative samples of Flemish pig producers every 2 yr. The share of farms with group housing increased from 10.5% in 2003 to 29.8% in 2007, but then dropped to 24.6% in 2009. It appears that after 2005 users of old group housing systems in particular stopped farming. Because sow herd size increased more on farms with vs. without group housing and because the proportion of the herd that was group-housed also tended to increase between 2003 to 2009, the change to group housing took place faster when expressed at the level of the sow (from 9.1% in 2003 to 34.1% in 2009) instead of farm. The percentage of farmers planning to convert to group housing within 2 yr was 4.1% in 2003, and 6 to 7% thereafter. These were typically young farmers (P = 0.006) with a large sow herd (P < 0.001) and with a likely successor (P = 0.03). Free access stalls were the most common group housing system (31% of farms, 37% of sows). Their popularity is expected to increase further at the expense of electronic feeding stations, ad libitum feeding, and stalls/troughs with manual feed delivery. User satisfaction was generally high but depended on whether or not all gestating sows were kept in group (P < 0.001), the provisioning of environmental enrichment (P = 0.057), and the age (P = 0.012) and type (P = 0.016) of system. The main criteria for choosing a certain group housing system were the investment costs and sow health and welfare. The importance of economic reasons (P = 0.007) and type of labor (P = 0.043) decreased with the age of the system. In 2003 and 2005 the main reason for not having converted to group housing was that farmers would stop keeping sows by 2013. In 2007 and 2009 the reasons mainly concerned uncertainty about the future and maximally delaying the conversion. Belgium is one of the European Union countries where the pig industry is expected to undergo drastic changes during the few years remaining before the ban on individual housing

Food Guides

Consumers are often confused by the information and advice continuously offered by the various sources on nutrition and healthy lifestyles, sometimes even by the details on food labels about the composition of nutrients (carbohydrates, fats, proteins, vitamins and minerals). The information is based on historical moments that affect food availability and messages that accompany the sale, as for example the current trend to consume gluten-free products by people suffering from celiac disease and people consuming gluten-free products by fad. Conversely, in the Italian post-war period, many advertising posters offered gluten-added pasta to help balance a low-nutrient diet. Nowadays, this poster (Fig. 1) may seem paradoxical but it was the result of an Italian historical era, with a completely different food availability. Just remember that, according to the first data available from FAO in 1961, the Kcal per capita daily available amounted to 2958 and the protein availability were equal to 82.54 grams per day per person. In 2013 the Kcal availability rose to 3579 registering an increase of 21% and protein availability increased to 108.51 grams per day per person, registering a 31% increase attesting a greater distribution of both availabilities among the population in order to ensure the extinction of structural and contingent forms of hunger

Escalante Valley - Iron County, Utah, Rapid Watershed Assessment - 8 Digit HUC #16030006

This rapid assessment is designed to gather and display information specific to the basin identified. This summary will highlight the natural and social resources present in the basin, detail specific concerns, and aid in resource planning and target conservation assistance needs. This document is dynamic and will be updated as additional information is available through a multi-agency partnership effort

Final Environmental Impact Statement For Rangeland Ecosystem Management on he Uinta National Forest, Provo, Utah

This Final Environmental Impact Statement describes alternatives, including a No Action alternative for management of National Forest Rangeland Resources on the Uinta National Forest. Alternatives range from no change from past management practices, which in some instances have resulted in less than favorable ecological conditions on National Forest Rangelands and riparian resources, to managing these resources to achieve the Potential Natural Community in terms of vegetative cover types and condition. The environmental consequences of all alternatives considered in detail are displayed. The alternatives selected for implementation will become an amendment to the Uinta National Forest Land and Resource Management Plan. The Utah Division of Wildlife Resources is a cooperating agency in the preparation of this Final Environmental Impact Statement

Pretty Tree Bench Vegetation Project, Draft Environmental Impact Statement

This Draft Environmental Impact Statement documents the analysis of the No Action, Proposed Action, and three action alternatives developed for the Pretty Tree Bench Project area. The Proposed Action and action alternatives considered in detail, are consistent with current management direction. Each alternative responds differently to the issues associated with the Proposed Action. The Proposed Action prescribes disturbances within a number of different vegetation types throughout the project area. One disturbance practice uses prescribed fire. The acres of treatment by vegetation type through the use of prescribed fire are: Sagebrush (200-250 acres), Gambel Oak (450-500 acres), Pinyon/Juniper (3000-3500 acres), Ponderosa Pine underburn (7000 acres), Mixed conifer underburn (300-350 acres), and Aspen regeneration burn (700 acres). A second disturbance practice that is proposed will be the commercial and non-commercial cutting of trees. Where aspen is being invaded by conifer trees, the conifer trees will be cut and removed (1000 acres). Where aspen can be commercially harvested, the aspen will be sold by bid (302 acres). The Proposed Action will also seed burn areas within the sagebrush and pinyon/juniper vegetation types, if ground cover does not establish. Native plant seed will be emphasized, but non-native plant seed can be used. Seeding will be done by hand or by aerial application. Travel management is also a part of the Proposed Action. No road construction or reconstruction would occur. The overall travel management strategy provides for a variety of vehicle uses, and describes year long and seasonal use opportunities. An OHV trail starting from the Dry Lake Trailhead and looping around Haws Pasture would be provided. The overall management would follow a closed unless designated open philosophy. Alternative I uses prescribed fire rather than commercial cutting of aspen. Alternative 2 has reduced commercial and non commercial aspen cutting by only using chainsaw disturbance outside of previously inventoried roadless areas. Alternative 3 reduces commercial aspen harvest to those areas west of the allotment fence. All action alternatives include different travel management practices. Alternatives 1 and 3 reconstruct a short portion of Road Draw Road. Alternatives 2 uses native seed for ground cover establishment in those areas that need seeding. The agency has not identified a preferred alternative at this time